Colorful days
by Felt95
Summary: One day the solitude of four-hundred and ninety-five years of a young vampire is broken by a friend who's determined to show her the world outside of her prison, but will a trip around the world turn into something more? Characters and setting are owned by Team Shanghai Alice.
1. Chapter 1: A glimmer in the Dark

Within the Scarlet Devil Mansion, the various rooms and hallways were thriving with activity, with the various fairy maids dusting the furniture and sweeping the halls. This sharp increase in activity was due to the arrival of spring, and the inevitable spring cleaning it brings with its coming. All of the rooms were crowded with fairy maids doing their respective jobs, from cleaning out the pantry, to sorting the thousands of books within the mansion's massive library. This year's spring cleaning was definitely the most active in recent years.

However, the mansion's basement was a stark contrast to all the lively activity on the upper levels of the mansion, with the hallways being completely empty. It looked as if no one has stepped within these halls for several years, having a great amount of dust accumulated on the floor and furniture.

Deep within these dark and dank hallways there was one door that stood out from all the others. It was made of cold steel rather than wood like all the other doors, it was also noticeably larger than the other doors in the hall, with it being at least double the size of the rest. Another significant difference was that it was covered with locks; these locks prevented those without keys from entering the room, or leaving it.

Within the room behind this very peculiar door there was a small room. In this room there was a small bed, with one pillow and a blanket with a few tears and holes resting on top of it.

There was a desk with several books and writing utensils scattered about its surface. Next to the desk was a small pile of toys, ranging to the common teddy bear to a board game. Some of the toys looked like they have been worn out from several years of use and were in a miserable condition. Though a few looked like they were still in a useable condition despite the age and condition they were in.

The walls of the room were decorated with several pieces of paper taped to them. The many pieces of paper made up one huge picture, depicting a large grassy field with white puffy clouds peppering a vast blue sky and a bright yellow sun childishly drawn on in the top right corner of the picture. The large piece of art looked like it was drawn by a mere child.

On the ceiling there hanged several small, multi colored lights that were attached to a thin cord, not unlike the lights one would use to decorate a Christmas tree. These small lights did very little to improve the lighting in the room, but enough to see that the room was as dusty as the hallway the room resided in.

The strange decorations paled in comparison to the sole resident occupying the room though. Sitting on top of the bed in the room was a young looking girl, looking to be between eight and ten years old. She sat with her arms wrapped around her legs; she wore a red vest and a skirt of the same color. Under her vest she wore a white shirt with puffy short sleeves and a yellow ascot around her collar.

Her eyes were strangely enough as red as the vest and skirt she wore. Her blonde hung down to her shoulders, with a side tail tied with a small red ribbon on the left side of her head.

This girl may have passed for a normal looking child if it weren't for the bizarre, metal like rods protruding from her back, with crystals of all the different colors of the rainbow hanging from them. Each of the crystals glowed faintly through the darkness just enough to provide a small light source for the girl. The girl's strange pair of wings could easily be compared to the decorations on the ceiling of the room in a sense.

The girl sat in silence, staring at the ceiling in above of her. She listened to hustling and bustling of the fairy maids above with curiosity, with her red pair of eyes never once looking away from the ceiling. The room was otherwise eerily silent deathly silent, with the only sounds that could be heard being voices on the upper levels of the mansion being muffled by the ceiling, the girl however, could make out every word spoken and found it as a new source of entertainment.

The girls' eyes suddenly darted towards the direction of the door, as she heard the sound of footsteps echoed throughout the hall, only to be suddenly replaced with the sound of the undoing of locks. Without warning the door suddenly creaked open, letting a faint light come in the room.

The young girl gasped in delight at the arrival of the person who stood at the now opened door. Standing at the doorway with a friendly smile on her face, was a tall red haired woman.

She wore a green Chinese style dress, along with a beret of a matching color that had a large golden star pinned on it resting on her head. In her arms she held a lunch box and a plate with a small steak on it that was still lightly steaming and was covered with a red sauce like substance on it.

"Meiling!" the young girl shouted in delight as she jumped off of the bed and ran towards the woman standing at the doorway, completely forgetting about her newfound past-time and giving the woman a warm hug.

The woman called Meiling gave the young girl a warm smile as she returned the hug. "Hey Flandre, it's great to see you! How have you been today?" Meiling asked.

"I've been doing okay, but now I'm great now that you're here!" Flandre replied happily, "…But won't Saky be mad that you aren't doing your job?" she asked with concern.

"Nah, I'm on my lunch break right now, no need to worry about that crazy maid…at least for now." Meiling replied, chuckling lightly at her own joke.

"Oh…Hey what'cha have there?" Flandre asked curiously as she pointed at the things Meiling had brought with her with excitement.

"Oh this?" Meiling asked as she took a quick glance at the things she held before returning her gaze to her small friend. "Well I did say that it was my lunch break, and meals are much more enjoyable with good company. So when Sakuya asked me to bring you your lunch before starting my break, I thought it'd be nice to have lunch together and give you some company." Meiling replied in her normal cheerful tone.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" Flandre cried happily as she gave Meiling another hug, this having a much stronger grip, causing Meiling to cringe a bit from its strength. Meiling found humor in her friend's overjoyed response despite the pain the hug was causing her that moment, causing her to grow a large grin on her face.

While the two enjoyed their meals together, Meiling often talked about what she had been doing to keep herself busy since they've seen one another last, such as how she had started to plant new flowers in the mansion's gardens with spring finally arriving, or even the occasional story of one of Meiling's grand battles. She would even provide Flandre with the latest news from the world outside of the mansion's walls, with the most recent news being the resurrection of a human saint in Gensokyo. Each and every story Meiling told Flandre always put a smile on the vampire's day and made her day a little bit brighter.

Though the cheerfulness between the two's reunion was ended adruptly after Flandre's normally cheerful and childish expression disappeared and was replaced with a melancholic and timid one as she began to speak.

"Hey Meiling…Can I ask you something?" Flandre asked slowly.

"Of course! You can ask me anything!" Meiling replied happily, determined to answer her friend's question to the best of her ability.

"Do you…Do you know if…I'll be able to…I mean...well um…leave the basement soon…?" Flandre asked in a rarely heard sad tone of voice.

Meiling took several moments to gather her thoughts on how to answer this unexpected question. Meiling thought to herself as she contemplated on how to answer her Flandre's question without obliterating any of her hopes of one day living amongst the other residents of the mansion along with her sister.

The long silence of the room was broken when Meiling finally replied, "I'll be honest Flan, I don't know when you'll be free to leave the basement…but I swear to you on my honor as the Scarlet Devil Mansion's gate guard and your friend, that I will do everything in my power to see you out of this basement and into the world outside! Or my name isn't Hong Meiling!" Meiling shouted with great vigor and pride, pounding her fist against chest for emphasis.

Flandre then timidly stuck out her hand with her pinky finger stretched out and asked in a quiet voice "You promise…?"

Meiling, without hesitating for even a moment took her own pinky finger, and wrapped it around Flandre's and replied in a calm and reassuring voice "I promise, and I never break a promise, alright?"

Flandre's smile returned at Meiling's words of reassurance and then gave her friend a hug, this time taking care not to accidentally hurt her friend with her overwhelming strength.

This heartwarming moment wouldn't last though, as Meiling's break ended and had to return to her job quickly, lest she be met with an angry maid waiting for her back at her post upon her return.

"Come back and visit soon…Okay?" Flandre requested in her regular childish voice, though with a hint of sadness in it.

"Don't worry, I will." Meiling responded as she gave her small friend a pat on the head, lightly ruffling Flandre's hair.

Meiling then departed from Flandre's room, the door closing behind her and locking it after her. Though she was alone once again, Flandre had a renewed hope that she may one day be freed from the basement and be reunited with her beloved sister.


	2. Chapter 2: Meeting with the Devil

"Man, these hallways are so dirty…When's the last time those lazy excuses for maids clean down here?" Meiling asked herself as she traversed the empty labyrinth like basement. Many others would have lost their way by now, but Meiling knew the halls very well from her numerous visits to Flandre's room over the years.

"Meiling." A cold voice echoed behind Meiling.

"Who dares sneak up behind Hong Meiling!?" Cried Meiling as she began to turn around to confront the source of the voice, but jumped at the sight of the voice's owner.

Standing before Meiling was a woman, who only stood a few inches shorter than Meiling with hair as white as snow upon her head. She wore a dark blue European styled maid outfit, with her arms folded across her chest. Her eyes were an icy blue color, and bore a look of indifference on her face. Many wouldn't find this maid to look too frightening despite the intimidating expression on her face, but those who were familiar with the maid knew her knew that this meant she was moments away from brandishing one of the many knives she kept on her person at all times.

"O-Oh, M-Miss Sakuya! About that comment about the hallways! I d-didn't mean it! Honestly!" Meiling said nervously to the silver haired maid.

"Meiling, what are you doing here? Your break ended five minutes ago, you're supposed to be at your post." Sakuya asked, ignoring Meiling's attempt to cover her earlier comment on the hallways. Her voice showed slight irritation with her coworker's lack punctuality.

"O-Oh of course! I was just on my way there Miss Sakuya!" Meiling responded, with a bit of her confidence recovered from her earlier shock.

"Well hurry up then and get back to work before that damned witch decides she feels like 'borrowing' more of Miss Patchouli's books. I have enough problems keeping this household up and running without that thief causing property damage every time she feels like dropping by." Sakuya said in the calm and collected tone she was known for.

"Of course! No unwanted guests shall enter the abode of mistress Remilia while the mansion is under Hong Meiling's watchful eyes!" Meiling replied while saluting her superior with a grin.

Sakuya sighed at Meiling's response, "That's what you said the last time Marisa dropped by for a visit… Whatever, just return to your post and at least try to stay awake." And with that cold response, Sakuya began to walk away.

"Wait, Miss Sakuya!" Meiling called after her.

"…Yes?" Sakuya responded without turning around to acknowledge Meiling.

"Could you please send a request for a personal audience with the mistress? I have an important question to ask her." Meiling asked in a serious tone that was rarely heard from her.

"…I'll give the mistress your request for an audience during her tea time with Miss Patchouli, but I give you no promises." Sakuya said in her normal cold voice, devoid of any emotion.

"Thank you Miss Sakuya!" Meiling thanked gratefully in her usual cheerful demeanor.

"Just get back to work Meiling…" Sakuya said, brushing off Meiling's thanks and began to walking away once again.

"Right! Thanks again Miss Sakuya!" Meiling called back to Sakuya as she started jogging back to her post.

Once Meiling returned to the gates to resume her duties to stop any trespassers from entering the mansion, she began to think about just what she would say to her mistress during her personal audience with her.

"What to say…What to say…Gah! This is so hard!" Meiling cried to herself while tugging at her hair, causing a few strands of her crimson hair to come out of her scalp. "If I make one small slip up it might ruin everything! Argh! Come on think! Think!" Meiling shouted at herself in frustration, this time pounding herself on the head with both of her fists repeatedly.

"Whoa, you're actually awake? Dang someone call Aya! This is front page news here!" said an all too familiar voice.

Meiling looked up, and standing before her was a young woman, appearing to be between eighteen and twenty-one years of age, with flowing blonde hair hanging from her head, with a braid of hair tied with a green ribbon hanging down on one side of her head.

Atop her head sat a pointed black hat, the kind a stereotypical witch would be found wearing. She wore a black dress that had short white puffy sleeves, with an apron of a matching color to her sleeves sitting in front of her skirt. She had golden colored eyes and bore a smug grin on her face.

"Oh Marisa, what a surprise." Meiling responded sarcastically while rolling her eyes at the witch's remark.

"That's mah name, don't wear it out, ze!" Marisa replied in her usual chipper tone.

The witch was a common visitor to the mansion, showing up at least once a week to "borrow" anything she dubbed to be valuable to her, along with causing the occasional property damage during her frequent visits to the mansion. She also had a strange tendency to end her sentences with a "ze" every once in a while. Though she seemed to be completely oblivious that she does it whenever she's questioned about her odd speech pattern, Meiling just concluded it was just one of the kleptomaniac witch's odder quirks.

"So what's up with you today? You're always sleepin' like a baby when I drop by." Marisa asked.

"Since when did you start caring about other people's problems?" Meiling asked in a slightly irritated tone.

"Ouch! I'm hurt China, I really am! I thought we were buddies! After all you practically let me in here without a fight! I am shocked! Shocked I say!" Marisa replied sarcastically.

"Don't call me that! My name is Hong Meiling! And the only reason I let you in here without a fight is because Flandre enjoys your company, only heavens know why!" Meiling shouted angrily at Marisa.

"OK, OK calm down now, I'm just messing with ya, ze. Yeesh…"

Meiling sighed to herself, "I'm sorry for snapping at you…I'm just…Under a bit of stress right now…" Meiling replied while she rubbed the back of her head stressfully, with her eyes downcast.

"Sounds like someone needs to talk to Dr. Kirisame! Now what seems to be the problem, ze?" Marisa asked with her usual cheerfulness.

"Well…I guess I can tell you considering how you care about Flandre as much as I do…" Meiling began.

"Eh? Flan? What about her? Is something wrong with her? Tell me!" Marisa shouted, showing great concern that's rarely heard from her.

"No, No! She's fine! I visited her not too long ago actually." Meiling explained.

"Then what's the problem? Spill the beans already!" Marisa asked impatiently.

"I was just about to until you interrupted me, now just let me finish." Meiling grumbled before continuing, "Anyways my problem here is that I was going to ask mistress Remilia about letting Flandre out of the basement…" Meiling said.

"Whoa! Really ze!? Looks like good old China's grown a back bone! Even I haven't gotten the nerve to ask fangs about that!" Marisa interrupted in surprise.

"Yes, really." Meiling replied patiently.

"Dang, you must really care for the kid, I gotta respect that."

"Well thanks…Anyways the problem is that I'm having trouble thinking up the right words to say…Any advice?" Meiling asked, with a hint of humility laced in her voice.

"Awww shucks, your overthinking things! Just let your heart do the talkin and Flan'll be outta the basement in no time! Just have some self-confidence, ze!" Marisa said enthusiastically, giving Meiling a thumbs- up.

"You're right! Thanks Marisa! I'll get Flandre out of the basement no problem!" Meiling said with great enthusiasm, reassured by Marisa's words of encouragement.

"Any time, but if that fails you could always sneak her out, ze." Marisa said jokingly while winking at her.

"Ha, I'll keep that in mind."

"Well, with that I'm off, gotta get back home before it gets to dark."

"What? You're not going to try to "borrow" anything?" Meiling asked.

"What? A gal can't just chat with a friend? Besides I got my fill of borrowing from Patchy while you were yelling at yourself like a lunatic, ze." Marisa replied smugly.

"Wait, what!?" Meiling asked in shocked.

"Hahaha, later China!" Marisa shouted as she bolted away on her broom.

"Dang it, Marisa! Get back here!" Meiling shouted at the thief, but the effort was in vain as Marisa was long gone.

Meiling sighed to herself sadly, "I really hate my job sometimes…"

With Meiling no longer worried about meeting her mistress from Marisa's words, Meiling began to doze off as she normally would. Meiling's dreams were usually quite strange, one example being her battling a giant talking catfish, but today Meiling's dream was quite normal in comparison to doing mortal combat with a giant catfish.

In this dream Meiling was planting flowers in a large garden, with a huge assortment of flowers, from sunflowers to roses, and much, much more. But Meiling's dream garden paled in comparison to the person who stood next to her as she watered the various plants in the massive garden.

Standing next to Meiling with a great big smile was Flandre, providing Meiling with company as she worked.

"Meiling…"

Out of all the dreams Meiling has had in her life, it ranked in the top five, if not ranked as the best dream she's ever had.

"Meiling…"

Not only was she in her very own dream garden, she was also in the company of the person she would consider to be her best friend, Meiling wouldn't mind having more dreams like this…

"Meiling!"

Meiling awakened from her dreams with the call of her name. As Meiling opened her eyes, she was met with an angry looking Sakuya, standing under the moonlight with her arms crossed as she stared daggers at the gatekeeper. "Moonlight? How long was I out for…?" Meiling asked herself in her half-asleep state before realizing that her superior was standing before her as she became more and more impatient with her.

"O-Oh Miss Sakuya! I was just resting my eyes! I swear!" Meiling stuttered as she braced herself for any knives the maid might throw at her.

Sakuya simply groaned to herself, "What part of 'stay awake' didn't you understand, Meiling?" Sakuya asked as she rubbed her forehead in frustration.

"I'm really sorry Miss Sakuya! It won't happen again! I-"

"Save it the excuses Meiling. I'm here to inform you that your shift is over, and that the mistress will see you now, she is currently in her study. Do not keep her waiting." Sakuya interrupted.

"Oh right! Thank you Miss Sakuya!" Meiling said as she began to dash inside the mansion.

"Sometimes I wonder how she stays in employment…" Sakuya said to herself once Meiling was out of earshot.

As Meiling reached Remilia's study, she took a few moments to collect her thoughts. "Alright Meiling…You can do this…" She said to herself, and then knocked timidly on the study's door.

"Come in." a young yet mature sounding voice said from the other side of the door.

Meiling took one last deep breath before opening the door to the study.

The study had one lone desk in the center of the room, with one chair in front of it and another behind it. The desk had several papers strewn across its surface. Behind the desk and the chair behind it sat a bookcase filled with many books, more books than Meiling had probably read in her lifetime.

Sitting behind the desk was a small girl scribbling quickly on some papers with a feather pen. She wore a pink dress, her hair was purple and was up to the length of her shoulders, and upon her head she wore a mobcap that was the same color of her dress. Her most noticeable features were her blood red eyes and the black leathery wings that came out of her back.

"Ah Meiling, I was expecting you. Close the door and take a seat will you?" The young purple haired girl requested.

Meiling did as she asked and took a seat in front of the desk, waiting for the young girl to grant her permission to speak. The purple haired girl suddenly stopped writing on her paper, setting aside her pen and turning her attention to Meiling.

"So Meiling, what would you like to discuss with me? I hope it isn't about a raise." The young girl asked as she rested her head in her hands.

"N-Nothing like that, mistress Remilia. I-I'd actually like to d-discuss…"

"Stop your blubbering and get to the point Meiling. I'm a very busy person as I'm sure you know, and I'd prefer it if you didn't waste my valuable time. Now what is it that you want?" Remilia said irritably, cutting Meiling off midsentence.

"I'd like to talk about your sister!" Meiling cried out, almost shouting.

"What about her…?" Remilia asked as her eyes narrowed.

"W-Well mistress…I think it may be time to let h-her outside of the basement, she has much more control over her powers now…"Meiling stuttered as she tried to make her case.

"Meiling…Let me ask you something. Where in your job description does it say you may suggest courses of action to your mistress? Much less when you have no business sticking your nose into such subjects? Because I believe that falls more into Patchouli's job as my advisor." Remilia growled.

"B-But mistress!" Meiling began.

"Silence! I don't care for your petty opinions on my family matters! Now I don't want to hear another word on the subject from you! Flandre will remain in the basement now and until I say so otherwise! Am I understood?" Remilia roared at Meiling.

"…Yes mistress…" Meiling replied in an almost inaudible voice.

"Very good…Now leave me at once before I teach you why they call me the Queen of the Night." Remilia said as her crimson red eyes began to glow lightly.

"Yes mistress…" Meiling said with sadness evident in her voice.

Meiling then left her mistress's study, with her hopes of her dream ever becoming a reality now crushed in the span of a few short minutes.


	3. Chapter 3: Flight!

After Meiling's fruitless confrontation with Remilia, the saddened gatekeeper slowly walked back to her room in the mansion, her head downcast in shame.

"Some friend I am…I can't even keep my promise…I could've said something, anything…I can't believe I just ran away like a coward with my tail between my legs! I've brought shame to my family's name with my cowardice! I hope you can forgive your weak fool of a friend Flandre…" Meiling thought to herself sorrowfully.

As Meiling reached the door leading to her room, she began fishing out her keys from her pockets. Once she retrieved her keys she opened the door, and the gatekeeper silently entered the room. She quickly changed into her night clothes, which consisted of a plain white shirt and a pair of green shorts, threw off her beret and plopped onto her bed and turned the lights off. As Meiling stared blankly at the ceiling she realized she was missing dinner, though she didn't mind, not at the least. Going to dinner would mean she'd have to see Remilia again, and she was the last person she wanted to see at the moment. Heck, she's rather see Marisa right about now. She may be a pain to deal with, with her thieving ways; even so Meiling did get along well enough with the witch when she wasn't causing mischief. Meiling might go as far as considering her a friend.

At the thought of Marisa, Meiling began to remember the conversation the two had earlier that day. Specifically what Marisa said after Meiling asked her for advice on the meeting with Remilia, which sadly didn't go as well as she wanted it to. Marisa's words "You could always just sneak her out, ze", Echoed in Meiling's thoughts. "I wonder…could that work? I know Marisa was just joking around, but still…It could work with the right planning…Bah, what am I thinking? I can't just take Flandre out of the mansion and be on our merry way." Meiling thought to herself.

"But I swore to her that I would do everything in my power to make sure she can leave the basement and see the world…and Hong Meiling never breaks a promise, especially not one to a friend!" Meiling said to herself in her thoughts, with all her doubts now extinguished and replaced with determination.

By morning Meiling had devised a plan, it was risky but if it worked Meiling would be able to show her friend the beauty of the world beyond the mansion. But if it failed…Meiling would prefer not to think of the consequences.

Once Meiling was awake, she slipped on her day regular guarding uniform, put on her usual grass green beret and went down for breakfast. Thankfully Remilia would not be present, as Meiling was still wary of seeing her after the events from the night before.

As Meiling walked into the large dining room where the senior staff ate their meals, she was immediately met with a pleasant aroma entering her nostrils. In the center of the room was a long table, it was covered with plates, silverware and of course, food. Hanging above the table was a golden chandelier, which helped provide the lighting of the room, along with the sunlight coming in from the windows. Sitting at the table eating breakfast was a purple haired woman with just as purple eyes. She wore light purple robes that many would call pajamas, and a mobcap in a matching color on her head, with a crescent moon shaped pin attached to it. Sitting next to the purple garbed girl was a red headed one, with wings not unlike Remilia's coming both out of her head and back. She wore a black dress with white longs sleeves; she also wore a red necktie.

"Good morning Miss Patchouli and Koakuma." Meiling said to the eating duo.

"Meiling." The purple garbed woman named Patchouli acknowledged, then returned her attention on the meal before her.

"Good morning Meiling. How did you sleep last night?" Koakuma asked happily as Meiling took a seat across from the two.

"I slept fine, thank you for asking." Meiling replied to Koakuma.

"Really? That's good. I thought you might've had a rough time falling asleep last night." Koakuma said to Meiling.

"Why would you think that?" Meiling asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Well…You know…I heard your meeting with the mistress didn't go very well." Koakuma explained to Meiling.

"Y-You know about that?" Meiling asked nervously.

"Well, I don't know the details of your meeting, but I heard that it didn't end favorably to you." Koakuma explained as she took a bite of food from her plate.

"Oh…So how did you hear about that?" Meiling asked as she loaded her plate with food.

"Oh Miss Patchouli told me, and the mistress told her." Koakuma explained casually. Patchouli glanced up for a moment upon hearing her name being brought up, but then quickly went back to eating.

"I see…" Meiling said in response to Koakuma's explanation. "Oh this could be a problem…if Remilia told Patchouli the details of our discussion…This could take a turn for the worst…" Meiling thought to herself as she glanced at Patchouli taking the last bites of food from her plate.

"Ah, that was quite delicious…Koa, I will now be returning to the library now, please report there once you have finished your meal." Patchouli said as she got up from her seat at the table.

"Yes mistress." Koakuma replied to her master.

"Please commend Sakuya for this wonderful meal for me if you see her, Will you Koa? And Meiling, it was a pleasure seeing you." Patchouli said as she slowly exited the room.

"It was nice to see you too, Miss Patchouli." Meiling replied. "It doesn't seem like she knows any details of my meeting, but with that one you can never be too careful, there is a reason why her last name is "Knowledge" after all…" Meiling thought to herself as she watched Patchouli exit the room.

"Well I better get going as well before Miss Patchouli gets cranky with me; she can be so impatient sometimes. It was nice talking with you Meiling." Koakuma said after several moments had passed. With that, Koakuma left the room, rushing off to where her master was headed.

Meiling was then left alone in the dining hall, left alone to finish the rest of her meal in solitude. Meiling made quick work of her food, scarfing it down fairly quickly, once she finished stuffing herself with food, Meiling stood up to begin her guarding duties. But as she was ready to leave, she heard a door open, and saw Sakuya enter the room, with a tray of food balanced on the palm of one of her hands.

"Good morning Miss Sakuya!" Meiling greeted as she saluted her superior.

"Good morning, Meiling." Sakuya responded as she stopped to speak with Meiling.

"Where are you going with that food, Miss Sakuya?" Meiling asked out of curiosity.

"The young mistress's room, this is the time she usually arouses from her sleep." Sakuya explained to her coworker.

"Oh, let me do that for you Miss Sakuya! You must be busy enough the way it is without a little job like this." Meiling offered.

"Thank you Meiling, just be sure not to linger there any longer than needed, you still have your guarding duties to attend to." Sakuya said as she handed Meiling the tray of food she was holding.

"No problem Miss Sakuya! I'll be done in a flash!" Meiling said as she started heading out of the room and towards the basement. "How convenient, I can fill Flandre in on my plan now without raising any suspicion! Things are starting to look up for me for once!" Meiling thought to herself cheerfully as she walked through the dark and empty halls of the basement.

Meiling soon enough reached the cold metal door that was the entrance to Flandre's room, Meiling knocked on the door as it was common courtesy, and didn't want to accidentally walk in on the vampire changing into a new pair of clothes.

In response to Meiling's knocking, a tired sounding Flandre could be hear saying "Come in…" from the other side of the door.

When Meiling entered the room, she saw Flandre sitting up in her bed, wearing a red nightgown and appearing to be quite tired. Meiling surmised that the young vampire had woken up not too long ago or that Meiling had woken her up with her knocking. For a vampire, Flandre had unusual sleeping habits, rather than being active during the night, she was active during the day, and rested at night rather than vice versa. Meiling presumed this was the reason why Remilia rarely visited her, as their sleeping habits were polar opposites.

"Oh good morning Meiling…What're you doing here?" Flandre asked as she smiled tiredly at the gatekeeper.

"Good morning Flandre, I'm just here to give you your breakfast, and ask you a question." Meiling said as she handed her the tray holding her breakfast.

"Oh thanks Meiling…So what do you need to ask?" Flandre asked tiredly as she started eating.

"Well what would you say if I told you there was a way for you to leave the basement and explore the world like you've always told me you've dreamed of?" Meiling asked Flandre cheerfully.

Flandre looked up from her meal and stared at her friend with her mouth agape, and her eyes now wide and alert.

"D-Do you mean…?" Flandre stuttered in excitement and surprise.

"Well no…I tired asking your sister about releasing you but it didn't go that well…" Meiling explained with a frown on her face.

"Oh…" Flandre said as her surprised expression was replaced with one of sadness and disappointment.

"Hey don't look so sad Flan, Remilia may not have given you permission to leave your room, but that doesn't mean you can't leave." Meiling said happily.

"What do you mean?" Flandre asked curiously.

"I mean we could sneak out, and go explore the world! So what do you say? I know you don't like disobeying your sister and all, so it's up to you Flandre." Meiling asked her young friend.

Flandre simply stared at the gatekeeper, pondering on what to do. Flandre disliked disobeying her sister as Meiling had said; she had always tried her hardest to be the perfect younger sibling and please her elder sister. But now the opportunity to live her dreams and explore the world with her closest friend is within her grasp, the young vampire struggled to make a decision, with these conflicting thoughts within her head. After several moments of debating with herself on what course of action to take, Flandre finally answered Meiling's question.

"Y…Yes." Flandre answered timidly.

"Are you sure Flandre? If something goes wrong and we're caught, there will be consequences to pay." Meiling asked.

"Yes! I'm sure China, I trust you!" Flandre said as she hugged the gatekeeper in a tight embrace.

If it were from anyone else, Meiling would have chastised them for calling her "China." Flandre was one of the few people she didn't mind calling her by the nickname, Meiling thought it was cute when the pint sized vampire called her by the nickname, rather than annoying like when Marisa calls her by it.

"Alright, I'll do everything to make sure this plan will not fail." Meiling said reassuringly as she hugged the vampire back.

"What's your plan anyways China?" Flandre asked as she let the gatekeeper go and went back to eating from her plate.

"Well it's not perfect, but the plan is to basically sneak out at sunset, that's when Sakuya is busy preparing dinner, and your sister will still be asleep at that time. We won't have to worry about Patchouli or Koakuma, those two rarely leave the library, so all that we'll have to worry about are the fairy maids, but even they aren't too much to worry about, their intelligence isn't exactly high after all. So that'll be the best time to sneak out." Meiling explained as Flandre continued eating her breakfast.

"Wow! I thought Patchy was the smartest one here! Your plan is perfect Meiling!" Flandre exclaimed.

"Oh stop…Your making me blush!" Meiling said with a grin as she rubbed the back of her head. "Anyways, I have to go report to guarding duty before Sakuya gets angry with me, I'll come and get you when it's time to put our plan to action. In the meantime, pack anything you'll need like clothes or something, alright?"

"Okay Meiling!" Flandre said cheerfully as she finished her breakfast.

"Good girl, I'll see you soon." Meiling said as she took the now empty tray and began her way to work. As Meiling exited the room she caught a glimpse of Flandre beginning to pack clothes into a bag as she hummed a happy tune.

Meiling's job was unusually quiet and uneventful that day. There weren't any intruders to speak of, not even the mansion's most frequent visitor, Marisa showed up today. Leaving Meiling little else to do besides stretching exercises and gazing at the sky until sunset, which was when Meiling's shift ended for the day conveniently enough.

Once Meiling left her post for the day and entered the mansion, she saw Sakuya walking though the foyer, towards the kitchen. "No doubt she's going off to prepare dinner." Meiling thought to herself as she approached the maid.

"Good evening Miss Sakuya!" Meiling greeted.

"Good evening Meiling, is it the end of your shift already?" Sakuya asked.

"Yep, Anyways Miss Sakuya, I forgot to mention this earlier, but I'll be taking my vacation days starting tomorrow. I hope it isn't an inconvenience." Meiling informed.

"I see…I'll have to begin looking into a suitable replacement then, thank you for informing me." Sakuya said.

"No problem. I'll be in my quarters if you need anything then." Meiling said as she began her way to her room.

"Very well then Meiling. Hmmmm…Perhaps the flower youkai's guard? Maybe the netherworld samurai? Or maybe even the Jiang Shi?" Sakuya mumbled to herself as she made her way to the kitchen.

Meiling quickly went to her room and started packing anything she thought she would need for their journey, as they would not be returning to the mansion for quite some time. Once she packed in all her necessities, like clothes, money and an old lantern from her home country, Meiling walked out of her room and locked the door behind her, and headed off towards the basement for the second time that day to retrieve her companion.

As soon as Meiling reached the door to Flandre's room, she tapped on the door a few times,"Flandre it's me, Meiling."

"Come in!" Flandre said cheerfully on the other side of the door. Meiling did as Flandre said and entered the room. Flandre was sitting on her bed, bouncing up and down excitedly while gripping a black staff like stick, with one end shaped like a spade.

"China, are you ready to go!" Flandre asked excitedly.

"Yep, we just need to pick up some food before we go though, can't travel on an empty stomach after all. I assume you're done packing right?" Meiling asked.

"Yup, I got everything I need, just like you told me to!" Flandre answered cheerfully.

"Ah good! Now let's go get some food and blow this Popsicle stand!" Meiling said to her excited friend.

"What's a popsicle stand?" Flandre asked curiously.

"Eh, to be honest I've got no clue. Just a weird outside world saying I heard." Meiling explained sheepily.

"Oh, well let's go blow this Popsicle stand!" Flandre said cheerfully.

"Right, let's go!" Meiling said as the two left the room, with Flandre taking one last look at the room that she had lived in for the past 495 years before going off to gather the last of their supplies.

The two wandered through the halls until they reached the mansion's food storage, it was here where most of the mansion's food is stored, with the rest being stored in the kitchen's pantry. The room had three rows of shelves, two of the rows filled to the brim with food and the third being filled with an assortment of drinks, such as some very expensive looking wine.

"Alright, let's take about…Two weeks' worth of food. There's so much in here, I doubt anyone will notice that it's missing…" Meiling said as she started putting all kinds of food into a bag.

As Meiling packed food into her bag, Flandre stared in awe of all the assortments of food stored in the room.

"Wow…there's so much food…" Flandre said in awe.

"Heh, yeah, this place is packed to gills with all kinds of foods and drinks, sometimes I wonder how your sister affords it all." Meiling replied as she continued packing.

"Huh...Hey what's that?" Flandre asked as she pointed to a shelf full of bottles of red liquid.

"Oh that?" Meiling asked as she looked up, "That would be the mistress's blood supply."

"Oh…Where does it come from?" Flandre asked with curiosity.

"It comes from humans, they exchange their blood for money, but the more generous ones give it to us for free." Meiling explained as she picked up the bag she packed food into and walked towards the shelf Flandre pointed to. "Good thing you asked me about it, I almost forgot to grab some." Meiling said with a chuckle. "So what type do you prefer?" Meiling asked.

"Type? Huh?" Flandre asked in confusion.

"Yeah, you know, Type A, Type B?"

"I don't know…Saky always puts the sauce on my meals, and she never told me what kind it was…" Flandre explained.

"Oh I see…Well don't feel bad! We'll just take one of everything!" Meiling said cheerfully as she started taking a bottle of each kind and putting it inside the bag.

"Alright, we got everything we need now, so let's get out of here before someone finds us." Meiling said after she finished packing the bottles of blood into her bag.

"Yeah, let's go!" Flandre said excitedly as she excitedly ran through the halls.

"Ah, wait for me Flandre!" Meiling yelled to her friend as she began running after her.

The two made it through the halls with ease, with most of the fairy maids slacking off instead of cleaning, and didn't notice the two sneaking through the halls. The two made it to the foyer soon enough without being noticed by anyone.

"Phew! We made it!" Meiling said as the two started for the door. "Well Flandre, are you ready? Once we leave, we won't be coming back for quite a while." Meiling asked.

"Yeah, I'm ready." Flandre said as she gave Meiling a smile.

"Good", Meiling said as she opened the door. "World, here we come!" Meiling shouted as the two exited the mansion, and flew off towards the land beyond the lake, while taking in the beautiful view of the sunset.

* * *

**Boy this is the longest chapter yet, it seems like these chapters get longer than the last. I hope your enjoying this story so far, and that you can be patient as I work on writing these. The next chapter is where the plot finally starts rolling. As always any advice on writing is appreciated. Oh, and just a little fun tidbit, this chapter's name came from a strategy game for the good ol Gamecube. Characters and Setting are of course owned by ZUN.  
**


	4. Chapter 4: Mushroom Magic

The Forest of Magic was an active area late in the day; it was when nocturnal animals and youkai awakened from their slumber and started their day, it's because of this that traveling in the Forest of Magic this late in the day was ill advised. Yet this was exactly what this pair of travelers was doing. But the two had nothing to worry about, as one was a powerful martial artist, and the other was a childish but immensely powerful vampire, the two being more than strong enough to handle any of the dangers prowling about the forest.

The two walked through the forest rather than flying, as it was the best way to avoid any unwanted attention, and it was the most scenic way of travel as well, giving Flandre an opportune chance to see what she has missed out on in her long four hundred and ninety five years of imprisonment.

"Hey Meiling, where are we going?" Flandre asked as she twirled her black staff, Levaetein around like a baton.

"To a human village", Meiling answered, "We're going to look for an inn there that hopefully serves youkai."

"Oh, Okay." Flandre replied cheerfully. "Hey, doesn't Marisa live in this forest?"

"Hmmm, Yeah I think so."

"Do you think we could visit her? I've always wanted to visit her like she always visited me!" Flandre asked excitedly.

"Of course, I don't see any harm in making a small detour. Besides, this way I might be able to get some of Miss Patchouli's books back from her." Meiling answered with a chuckle.

"Yay! Thanks China! So…Where is Marisa's house anyways?" Flandre asked as she looked around the forest.

"I dunno…I haven't been here in a real long time, guard duty doesn't give you a lot of opportunities to go places."

"Hmmmm…Oh hey look China!" Flandre exclaimed as she pointed her Levaetein at some smoke coming up from the forest.

"Smoke? Hmmmm, where there's smoke there's bound to be people, good eyes Flandre!" Meiling complimented.

"Heehee Thanks! Let's go check it out!"

"Right, even if it won't take us to Marisa, it might take us to someone who can." Meiling said as the two started off towards the source of the smoke.

The two trampled through the forest as they headed to the smoke's source. Flandre's childlike curiosity urged her to run as fast as possible to the source, forcing Meiling overexert herself just to keep up with her pint sized friend. The two eventually made it to a small clearing, near the center of it was a small house, looking big enough to house only one or two people. Smoke floated up from its stone chimney, but Flandre and Meiling were no longer focused on the smoke coming from the house, their attention was now held by the many button like pairs of eyes staring at the two from the house's crystal clear windows.

"Huh…Well this is interesting…" Meiling said as she took in the sight of the house.

"Do you think Mary lives here?" Flandre asked her taller companion.

"I doubt it; it looks to clean to be Marisa's." Meiling replied bluntly.

"Hmmmm…Let's go say hi!" Flandre said as she ran up to the door.

"Flandre, I don't think we should be going up to strange houses we don't know anything about and go knocking on their doors…" Meiling said as she followed her friend to the house.

"Anybody hooooooooooooommmmmmmme!" Flandre shouted as she pounded on the door.

"Just a moment!" a slightly irritated voice called from inside the house.

"Seriously, I think we should really consider getting out of here Flandre…This place gives me the creeps…" Meiling said as she glanced at the many pairs of eyes still staring at the two.

"Oh don't be such a chicken China…" Flandre said as she waited patiently at the door.

"Hong Meiling is no-" Meiling started to say as the door swung open. Standing at the door with a scowl on her face and her arms crossed was a young woman appearing to be in her early twenties. She had shoulder length blonde hair, light green eyes and wore a light blue colored dress. Resting on her shoulders was a small blanket like piece of cloth, and floating next to her was a small doll which also had blonde hair, and wore a black dress with a red ribbon.

"Well if it isn't the vampire's gatekeeper and…a friend. What do I owe the pleasure?" The blonde haired woman asked irritably.

Meiling happened to know this woman, she was Alice Margatroid. She gave the mansion a visit every once in a while to borrow books from Patchouli, and unlike Marisa, actually return them when she was finished with them.

"Oh, good evening Miss Margatroid! We were just-"

"Hi I'm Flandre! What's your name?" Flandre interrupted as she held out her hand towards Alice.

"Alice Margatroid, Seven colored magician of the Forest of Magic, it's a pleasure to meet you." Alice said still sounding irritated as she shook Flandre's hand. "So what brings you here?"

"We're looking for my friend Marisa! Do you know where she is?" Flandre asked.

"Marisa? Marisa Kirisame?" Alice asked.

"Yeah that's her! Do you know where she is?" Flandre asked once again.

"Yes, she lives nearby, probably the closest thing I have to a neighbor…I would direct you to her house, but she dropped by not too long ago, rambling on about mushrooms and asked me if I'd like to join her in looking for some. I rejected her offer, and she ran off to only god knows where to go look for some." Alice explained.

"Awwww…" Flandre groaned.

"Don't fret, she should return soon. If you wish, you and the gatekeeper may wait here in my house until she returns." Alice offered.

"Oh you don't have to-"

"Wow, thanks Miss Alice!" Flandre interrupted again.

"Don't mention it. Just don't break anything and we'll get along swimmingly." Alice said as she gestured the two to the door.

Alice Margatroid's house was an interesting one; there was a fancy red circular rug in the center of the room, with a small coffee table sitting on top of it. Behind the coffee table was a couch looking to fit up to three people, with a cushioned armchair sitting diagonally from the coffee table. Though the most eye catching feature of the room was the numerous shelves in the room, all of them holding dolls of all kinds. Some wore fancy frilly dresses and others wore plain looking robes. Flandre and Meiling surmised that the eyes staring at them from the windows belonged to them.

"Take a seat anywhere you'd like, I have some tea brewing, would either of you care for some?" Alice asked hospitably.

"Yes please, that would be appreciated." Meiling replied kindly as she took a seat on the couch, placing her bags at her feet.

"Wow, you have lots of dolls, they're really pretty…" Flandre said in awe as she admired the dolls from their shelves as she joined Meiling on the couch.

"Yes quite a fine collection you have here Miss Margatroid." Meiling added.

"Ah, thank you, I take a deep amount of pride in my collection; I designed and made each and every one of them." Alice said as she walked to her kitchen.

"You made them all? That's so cool!" Flandre complemented.

"Ha, thank you it's a bit of a hobby of mine." Alice said, obviously overjoyed from the compliments she's receiving. "Though not everyone seems to enjoy my collection like you seem to…" Alice said bitterly as she walked into the room with a silver tray holding three teacups and a teapot.

"What do you mean?" Flandre asked curiously as she grabbed one of the teacups from the tray Alice held.

"Well…Not everyone thinks it's as you said, "cool", most people think it's weird and creepy…" Alice said sadly as she handed Meiling a teacup, and took a seat in the armchair.

"Well that's not nice at all! Those people are just a bunch of bullies, they're just jealous because they aren't as talented as you!" Flandre said reassuringly. "Right, China?"

"Yes, of course! I'll admit they were a bit unsettling from the windows, but once you get a closer look you really start appreciating the craftsmanship. I haven't seen such fine work since the Great Wall of China was constructed!" Meiling reassured.

"Well thank you two, it refreshing to see that there are still people who can appreciate fine doll crafting." Alice said as she took a sip from her cup. "Actually if you would like, I could show you two some of my finer works."

"That would be great!" Flandre chirped happily.

"It would be a pleasure." Meiling added.

"Hmmmm, Alright follow me then." Alice said as she stood up from her armchair.

Alice quickly showed her two guests to their destination, as her house was quite small. Alice produced a key from her dress pocket and unlocked the door. The room was rectangular in shape; against both of the walls were shelves that covered them completely. The shelves were filled to the brim with dolls, dolls as far as the eye could see. These dolls were unique from their predecessor's from the living room, as both Flandre and Meiling recognized some of the dolls as people they know, some they did not, but could only assume they were also based off of people in Gensokyo.

"Wow these are amazing! Hey this one looks like Mary!" Flandre pointed out excitedly as she stared at the doll that resembled Marisa with childlike wonderment.

"Thank you and yes that one would be based after Marisa, all of the dolls in this room are designed after everyone who was involved in Gensokyo's biggest incidents you see. I know it's a bit strange, but I enjoy making them." Alice explained.

"Hey look Meiling, This one looks just like you!" Flandre said as she held the doll up to Meiling to see.

"Wow, it does, down to almost every detail." Meiling said as she inspected the doll.

"Ooh! This one looks like big sister Remy!" Flandre said excitedly as she looked at the doll resembling her sister happily.

"What, big sister?" Alice asked curiously with an eyebrow raised at the comment.

"Yeah, this one looks just like my big sister!" Flandre said happily.

"Really, Remilia never said anything about having any younger siblings…But it would explain why her gatekeeper is with you." Alice said, still skeptical about Flandre's claims.

"Yes, it's true Miss Margatroid." Meiling confirmed.

"Hmmmm, it would seem that I'm missing a doll from one of my sets then…" Alice muttered to herself. "Excuse me Flandre, if it would be alright I would like to craft a doll in your likeness. It has come to my attention that I'm missing a doll from the Scarlet Devil Mansion set."

"Sure, go ahead! Tell me when you're finished, I'd love to see it!"

"Thank you, I'll remember to inform you of its completion." Alice said with a small smile.

"! I'm back, ze!" a voice shouted from outside the house.

"Ugh…Why does she insist on always announcing her return from her mushroom hunts…?" Alice grumbled to herself, "Well it would seem Marisa has returned, giving you no more reason to be here."

"It would appear that way, thank you for your hospitality Miss Margatroid." Meiling said with a bow. "Shall we go meet with Marisa now, Flandre?"

"Yeah let's go China!" Flandre replied cheerfully.

The three then exited the doll filled room, and out of the house. Sure enough, sitting on a stump in the clearing with a sack full of mushrooms was Marisa. She appeared to be inspecting her findings of the day.

"Hey Alice, yer gonna wish you had come along! I found a bunch of rare mush-" Marisa said as she looked up in surprise. "Flan! And China! What're you two doin here! Did Remilia letcha outta the basement finally?"

"Basement? Marisa, what are you talking about? Will someone please explain this all to me?" Alice asked impatiently, obviously confused.

"Not exactly Marisa…" Meiling answered. "Hey Flan, why don't you explain things to Alice here, I'm sure she's confused and would like an explanation right about now. Me and Marisa need to discuss some things, alright?" Meiling asked in a cheerful tone.

"Okay!" Flandre replied happily as she took Alice by the arm and started explaining the situation to her as she walked her back to her house.

"Alright China girl, spill the beans, ze." Marisa said impatiently.

"Okay…So you know how I was gonna meet with Remilia and convince her to let Flandre out of the basement?"

"Yeah…" Marisa replied slowly.

"Yeah so that didn't go too well, so…I kinda did as you suggested and sneaked her out, cool story huh?"

Marisa chuckled in response to Meiling's explanation and said, "Hoo boy… You know I was joking about that right? But damn, I gotta give ya credit China; you're gutsier than I thought! I always thought you were too dutiful to do something like this."

"Yeah well my friends come before my job." Meiling responded as she rubbed the back of her head.

"So now that little Flan here's out and about, what're you two going to do now?" Marisa asked.

"Well Flandre always wanted to see the world as she's told me on numerous occasions, so we're going to go everywhere in Gensokyo for her to see and explore. Where we go is pretty much up to her you could say. We were actually on our way to the human village to look for an inn until Flandre decided she wanted to visit you." Meiling explained.

"Huh, a "Flandre Scarlet: World Tour." Marisa said with a laugh. "But skip the inn; you two're staying at my place for the night! The inn keeper in the village is an ass when it comes to servin youkai anyways."

"That's very kind of you Marisa, I owe you one!" Meiling thanked Marisa happily with a bow.

"Ah, don't get all sappy on me, ze. But just to warn ya, Remilia will find out Flan's missing eventually, and when she does, she ain't gonna be happy. Ya better watch your back."

"Yeah, I know. I'm gonna be in a heck of a lot of trouble when I go back to the mansion." Meiling said with a sigh.

"Ha, worry about that later. So should we get back to those two?" Marisa said as she motioned her head towards Flandre and Alice. "I'm sure Flan's done explaining everything to her by now and Alice is going on one of her doll rants right about now, it'd be a shame for Flan to be free for the first time in four hundred and ninety five years just to die of boredom, ze."

"Oh I'd doubt that, those two are like peas in a pod. If you didn't know they just met, you'd say they were old friends." Meiling replied.

"Huh, I'm glad they're getting along, gods know those two both could use more friends." Marisa said as they walked towards the two.

"And I was thinking of putting on a puppet show at the festival that's coming up soon." Alice rambled on to Flandre.

"That sounds like fun! I hope big sis will let me go to it…"

"I'm sure she will, if not I'll just have to put a show on in the mansion." Alice said with a rarely seen smile. "Oh, are you two done discussing things now?" Alice asked as she noticed the pair of Marisa and Meiling coming towards them.

"Yep, and it looks like you two are too." Marisa replied.

"Yes, it's a bit unbelievable that Remilia would ask her little sister to live in a basement, I'll have to have some words with her…" Alice said.

"Yeah, it's a bit hard for me to believe myself, ze. Anyways, these two're stayin at my place for the night, so we'd better get going. Later Alice." Marisa said with a wave of her hand as she walked towards the clearing's edge.

"Very well, see you later Marisa." Alice said to Marisa, who was now waiting for her guests. "Well it was a pleasure to see you again Meiling, and a pleasure to meet you Flandre, stop by again sometime." Alice said as she shook their hands.

"As it was a pleasure to see you again Miss Margatroid, I hope we see you again soon." Meiling replied.

"It was nice meeting you too Alice, I hope I'll get to see you again!" Flandre said in her usual childish demeanor.

"Likewise." Alice replied simply as she watched the three exited the clearing and into the forest.

The small group of three made it to Marisa's house in just a few minutes, Alice and Marisa's houses were close enough to be neighbors as Alice said. Marisa's house sat in a clearing not unlike Alice's house; it was also small like her house too. Though unlike Alice's house, Marisa's house looked messy; her windows were a filthy contrast to Alice's crystal clear ones, and her door looked like it might fall off its hinges any second. The house's interior wasn't much better, the walls looked like they were fire damaged; her bed looked old and musty, as did the sheets and pillows sitting on it. The floor was covered with books, laundry and an assortment of other things that were probably stolen from others. In the top leftmost corner of her house was a wooden desk that was like the floor, covered with books. It also had mushrooms and vials of multi colored liquids sitting on it in addition to the books.

"Ah, home sweet home!" Marisa said as she tossed her bag of mushrooms towards the desk.

"This is where you live? It looks like a tornado went through here!" Meiling exclaimed.

"Oh don't get your undies in a bunch, ze. I wasn't expecting guests." Marisa brushed off as she took out her broom and start brushing out a pathway.

"Gah, it smells like something died in here!" Meiling said as she plugged her nose, with Flandre following suit.

"Eh, something probably did." Marisa said with a shrug.

"Wow, you've got a lotta books Mary." Flandre noted as she took a seat on Marisa's bed.

"That's because she "borrows" them at any given opportunity." Meiling added.

"Oh geez, I plan on returning them…When I'm dead." Marisa said with a laugh as she finished brushing off her floor. "Anyways my bed only fits up to two so someone's sleepin on the floor, and it ain't gonna be me. So decide whose going where, ze."

"Funny how you know how it fits two people." Meiling said smugly.

"Oh shut it China girl, this isn't the first time I've had guests." Marisa said with a blush.

"I'm sure it isn't." Meiling replied.

"Shut up." Marisa said with her face now a rosy red.

"Huh? I don't get it, why are you blushing Mary?" Flandre asked in curiosity.

"No reason Flan, don't worry about it." Marisa replied.

"Oh, Okay…" Flandre said.

"Joking aside, I'll take the floor you can take the bed Flan." Meiling said with a laugh.

"Alright, Thanks China." Flandre thanked appreciatively.

"Don't mention it." Meiling replied cheerfully.

"Well now that that's settled, who wants somethin to eat?" Marisa asked.

"I do, I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!" Flandre said as she rubbed her stomach.

"Sure, I could go for a bite to eat." Meiling replied as she set her bags down by Marisa's bed.

"Alrighty! On today's menu we have mushrooms, mushrooms and more mushrooms!" Marisa said as she tossed the two some mushrooms from her bag.

"Gee Marisa; you sure do like your mushrooms…" Meiling said as she caught one of the mushrooms Marisa threw to the two.

"Yup, mushrooms are my life; don't know what I'd do without the things." Marisa replied as she stuffed an entire mushroom in her mouth.

"Mmmmm, these are good!" Flandre said happily while she chewed on one.

"See, they aren't bad! Don't knock em til ya try em." Marisa said as she finished her first mushroom and dug another one out of her bag.

"Hmmmm, these don't taste half bad." Meiling said after taking a bite from the mushroom Marisa gave her.

"Toldja." Marisa said smugly. "So Flan, I hear y'got this whole world tour thing planned, so any places in mind to go to first, ze?

"I dunno…I always wanted to see that place where moon people live that Saky told me about." Flandre said as she took another bite from her mushroom.

"Y'mean Eientei? That's where that crazy doc and that lazy moon princess live with all their rabbits, ze."

"Yeah, that's it! Saky told me that she and big sis went there and beat them up to save the moon!" Flandre said excitedly.

"Heh yeah, the imperishable night incident, not one of my favorite nights…" Marisa said.

"Huh? What do you mean Marisa?" Meiling asked.

"Oh…Heh, heh…Funny story…You see, I kinda thought that Reimu and the gap hag were behind it…So I sorta attacked them and well to put it bluntly, they kicked my ass." Marisa said as she rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.

The room fell into silence until it was broken by laughter from Meiling.

"Wahahahaha! T-That's hilarious!" Meiling exclaimed in her laughter.

"Ah shut up China girl, or your sleeping outside tonight."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry…It's out of my system." Meiling said as she wiped a tear from her eyes.

"Hmph, whatever China, anyways it's getting late I think it's time to hit the hay." Marisa said as she walked to her closet and took out a blanket and pillow. "Here's a spare blanket and pillow for ya." Marisa said as she tossed them to Meiling.

"Thanks." Meiling said simply as she caught them.

"Yeah, yeah no probs." Marisa said as she threw off her hat and plopped down on her bed where Flandre was sitting. "Well night ya two." Marisa said as she fluffed her pillows and turned off the lights.

"Night Mary, Night China…" Flandre said sleepily as she rested head on a pillow.

"Sleep tight Flandre." Meiling responded as she lay down on a clear spot on the floor next to the bed.

The three quickly fell asleep. The room being completely silent aside from Marisa's snoring and the sounds of animals howling from outside.

* * *

**This chapter was a bit difficult to write at times, but still enjoyable to work on. In this chapter, one of TouHou's most popular characters, Alice makes her first appearance. I hope you enjoyed my portrayal of Alice for this story, the whole tsundere Alice thing is something that never really appealed to me. I always imagined her being a more secluded person with a small circle of friends and acquaintances, and being somewhat of a lonely character. Special thank you to XT-421 for pointing out a small error in the last chapter, it has been fixed now, thanks for pointing that out! It was quite embarrassing, I'll be looking through my work more thoroughly from now on. Sorry for rambling on, this is now officially my longest Author's note. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter and will look forward to future chapters! Characters and Setting are owned by ZUN.**


	5. Chapter 5:The liveliest day in 495 years

At the Scarlet Devil Mansion, the level of activity has dropped significantly, with the fairy maid's going back to their old lazy habits of slacking off on work. The maids would only go back to work if they were chided by one of the mansion's senior staff. Despite the maids laziness the mansion still remained neat and tidy as always. The mansion's halls were empty, and it was in a state of silence, aside from the sound of footsteps resonating within the halls. The source of the noise was the head maid of the mansion, Sakuya Izayoi, walking quickly yet gracefully through the halls with a plate that held a bowl of steaming oatmeal on it balanced on the palm of her hand.

Sakuya made it to her destination in no time, literally, thanks to her time manipulation abilities, which helped her greatly in her line of work. Sakuya stood within the mansion's dark basement, standing right before the metal door that led to Flande's room. She gently knocked on the door with her open hand.

"Young mistress, are you awake? I have brought your breakfast." Sakuya called, but received no response. "Young mistress, if you're awake please respond." Sakuya still received no answer. "Must be asleep…" Sakuya thought to herself aloud as she took out a small key and used it to open the door.

The door opens with a loud creak; Sakuya entered the young vampire's room, taking in the sight of all the odd decorations covering the room, from the lights covering the ceiling to the childish drawing depicting a grassy hillside covering the wall. All of this Sakuya saw, but not the room's sole occupant.

"Young mistress, I have no time for games, please show yourself and eat your breakfast." And once again, Sakuya received no response.

Sakuya's eyes then drifted to Flandre's bed, which was in poor condition, and noticed a piece of paper sitting on its covers. Sakuya gently set the oatmeal down on the bed and picked up the note and read the words that were sloppily written on it slowly.

"...The mistress won't be pleased by this news…So much for a calm morning." Sakuya muttered to herself as she finished reading the note.

* * *

Back at Marisa's house, Meiling was groggily waking up from her slumber, as she slowly opened her eyes Meiling noticed something was different from the night before. Meiling realized what had changed once she rolled onto her side and was met with the sight of Marisa lying next to her, snoring loudly.

"Marisa, what do you you're doing?" Meiling asked in a loud whisper as she started to attempt to shake her awake.

"Mmmmm…Quiet down ya dang kids…Get off mah dang horse…" Marisa mumbled in her sleep in response.

"Marisa, wake up!" Meiling said in an even louder whisper, this time right in her ear.

"Huh, what's goin on, what time is it!" Marisa asked, now wide awake and fully alert.

"Why're you sleeping on the floor next to me you weirdo?" Meiling asked, ignoring Marisa's questions.

"Eh? Oh yeah…Well ya see China, little Flan over there kept tryin to hug me, swore she almost hugged me to death! The kid's gotta heck of hug there, I tell ya what!" Marisa said as she looked to a still peacefully resting Flandre. "So I tried pushing her on her side so she doesn't hug me to death, but then her wings there start poking me in my sides. So after that I called it quits on sleeping in the same bed as her and decided to crash with you." Marisa explains.

"Oh, sorry about that…She's always restless in her sleep and from what I've seen she always tries hugging something tightly in her sleep." Meiling apologized. "I think it might have to do with some bad dreams or something…"

"Eh, don't sweat it, ze." Marisa said as she jumped off the ground and scooped up her signature hat and started dusting it off. "So…When're you two gonna head on out for Eientei? It's a bit of a long ways from here."

"As soon as Flandre wakes up, I'd hate to overstay our welcome." Meiling answers as she begins to do some stretches.

"Ah don't worry about China girl, sure sleepin with Flandre ain't a barrel of monkeys, but I do like hangin out with ya two y'know." Marisa says as she throws on her hat, now dusted clean.

"Well that means a lot Marisa, but I'd like to put as much distance between us and the Scarlet Devil Mansion as possible. It'd be a shame to be caught on our first day after going through so much trouble." Meiling explains.

"Oh right, right, best to leave soon, fangs'll probably sick her crazy maid on yer asses, ze."

"I wouldn't doubt it." Meiling said with a sigh.

Meiling and Marisa's conversation was suddenly interrupted by a loud yawn. The two looked towards the direction it came from and found that Flandre was now awake.

"Mmmmm…Good morning…" Flandre said as she rubbed her eyes.

"Mornin Flan!" Marisa greeted cheerfully.

"Good morning Flandre, are you ready to go?" Meiling asked in a motherly tone.

"Mmmmm, I guess…Let's go see some moon people." Flandre responded sleepily as she crawled out of Marisa's bed.

"Well it's been fun Marisa, thanks for having us." Meiling thanked respectfully.

"Feh, it was nothin, that's what friends are for, ze."Marisa said with a grin. "Good luck ya two, ya might need it."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Meiling replied dismissively. "We need all the luck we can get and whatnot, I know."

"Bye Mary, We'll tell you all about me and China's adventures once we get back." Flandre said as she gave Marisa a hug.

"Lookin forward to it kid, take care of yourself." Marisa replied as she returned the hug.

* * *

Sakuya paced outside of Remilia's room nervously, a feeling that felt foreign to the normally calm and collected maid. She tried to collect her now chaotic thoughts as she contemplated how she would break the news to Remilia that her younger sister was now missing. Which was quite difficult as Sakuya's nerves of steel were now gone and all that was left was the feeling of fear, after all her mistress wasn't known for taking bad news well. Sakuya finally strengthened her weakened nerves enough to knock on the door.

"This had better be good, Sakuya, I dislike having my rest being interrupted…" Remilia grouchily called from her room.

"Milady, I'm sorry to disturb you but we have an urgent problem on our hands. May I enter so we may discuss this privately?" Sakuya asked calmly, trying to hide her feelings of fear.

"Very well Sakuya, this problem had better be worth my notice." Remilia said, granting Sakuya entry.

Sakuya entered the room silently, closing the door quietly behind her. In the center of the room was a queen sized bed, it laid against the wall of the room. Sitting up under the white covers of the bed was a grouchy looking Remilia, wearing a white night gown. Sakuya gave her a small bow of respect to her employer and began to speak. "Milady, I don't know how to tell you this…but it would seem the young mistress has left the basement and is no longer on the mansion's grounds."

"What?" Remilia shouted in anger.

Sakuya took a deep breath and continued. "And to make matters worse, Meiling is currently on vacation and is no longer at the mansion and we have no way of contacting her or knowing where she is. This will make retrieving the young mistress even more difficult without Meiling to coerce her into returning to the mansion."

"Meiling you damned fool…" Remilia growled.

"Milady?" Sakuya asked, puzzled.

"Flandre's escape and Meiling going on vacation at the same time is no coincidence, that idiot gatekeeper helped her escape!" Remilia roared in fury.

"Are you certain mistress? I know the two have some sort of bond but…"

"I'm very certain, that imbecile asked about releasing Flandre from the basement not too long ago." Remilia said as her crimson colored eyes shifted slowly to the window. "Oh Sakuya, I do believe we have an eavesdropping crow in our presence…"

"Shall I take care of her for you mistress?" Sakuya asks as she took out a pair of knives.

"No, bring her to me; I would like to have some words with our little rat." Remilia replied.

"Very well, it shall be done mistress." Sakuya said as she took out a golden pocket watch from her dress pocket and clicked it open. Sakuya disappeared as soon as the watch clicked open, a few moments passed and Sakuya suddenly reappeared with her pocket watch now closed. She gripped a black haired girl by her shoulder, and held a knife to her throat in the other.

The black haired girl's eyes were wide in surprise, but quickly went back to its normal size and grew a cocky grin on her face. Her hair was semi-long, she wore a white blouse, and a red tokin hat on her head. She had a camera hanging around her neck and gripped a notepad and pen in her hands.

"Well, well, well…look who we have here…if it isn't the reporter of the Bunbunmaru newspaper, Aya Shameimaru herself…" Remilia purred as she jumped out of her bed and began to pace in front of Aya. "What are you doing here, little crow?"

"Nothing much, just getting my front page story! So Miss Scarlet how does the news of your dear little sister running away from home make you feel? Furious, depressed, betrayed, overjoyed? Come on gimme the scoop!" Aya asked as she started jotting down notes on her notepad quickly.

"Mind your manners crow." Sakuya said in a threatening tone as she moved her knife closer to Aya, so that it now touched the skin of Aya's neck.

"Ayayayayayaya! Watch it with the knife!" Aya exclaimed.

"It's fine Sakuya, no need to butcher the pest now." Remilia said. "Now I would usually just break your pretty little nose and let Sakuya do as she wishes with you, but today is your lucky day Aya…" Remilia said as she stopped pacing and stood before Aya.

"Eh it is? So I can print this story, yeah?" Aya asked in bewilderment.

"Oh yes it is Aya, and yes you may print your story in fact I'll even let you interview me for information for your little article for that garbage you call a newspaper. In exchange you will put an advertisement in your newspaper for me." Remilia said.

"Ayayayayayaya! This is fantastic! So what's your advertisement Miss Scarlet?" Aya asked excitedly as her mind flooded with thoughts of her newspapers success after she prints this exciting story.

* * *

"Wow, I've never seen so many people in one place before!" Flandre exclaimed in awe as she and Meiling entered the village.

"Yeah, it's a bit overwhelming at first, but you'll get used to get to it in time." Meiling replied with a warm smile, amused by her small friend's awe filled expression.

"Do you think we could look around Meiling? Please, with lots of sugar on top?" Flandre pleaded.

"Oh alright since you asked nicely." Meiling said happily as she ruffled Flandre's hair.

"Yes! Thank you China!" Flandre shouted gleefully as she hugged the tall gatekeeper tightly.

"You're welcome Flandre, but we can't stay too long if we want to make it to Eientei before sunset." Meiling said as she glanced around the town. "While we're at we should look for a map…" Meiling added as Flandre slid her hand into Meiling's and started walking with her hand in hand through town like mother and child.

The two went past many stores and food stands, with Flandre pointing excitedly at all the sights in the village excitedly. Meiling laughed at Flandre's over excitement of all the things she saw. Afterwards once Flandre had calmed down a bit, the two decided to stop at a small food stand to rest and have lunch before departing for Eientei, as Flandre needed to rest from exposure to sunlight, as it made her feel slightly weak when she was in contact of it for too long, otherwise it had no effect on her strangely enough for a vampire.

"Hmmmm, we'll have two bowls of ramen please." Meiling said as dropped a few coins on the counter, making a small clinking noise as they fell on the counter's surface.

"Two bowls ramen comin right up lass." The stand keeper replied in a gruff but jolly tone as he started preparing food for his two newest customers.

"What's ramen China?" Flandre asked curiously as Meiling hefted her up onto one of the stand's stools.

"It's kind of like soup, just give it a try and I'm sure you'll like it." Meiling replied.

"Oh…Alright." Flandre replied as she stared down at the counter.

"Here ya go ladies, two bowls ramen." The stand keeper said as he slid each of them a bowl.

"Thanks mister." Flandre mumbled shyly as she took the bowl.

"Hahahaha, no problem little lassy." The stand keeper said in a booming laughter. "Your mother here obviously taught ya yer manners."

Meiling nearly spat out the food that was in her mouth from the comment. "M-Mother! No, no, no I'm not her mom!" Meiling exclaimed with rosy red cheeks.

"Oh, sorry miss! You two just got that whole mother-daughter feel ya know? Sorry bout that miss." The food stand keeper apologized hastily.

"It's alright, no harm done. Sometimes it does feel like she's my daughter actually." Meiling said with a laugh.

"Mmmmm, this is good." Flandre said, seemingly oblivious to what had been going on around her.

"Glad yer enjoyin it miss." The food stand keeper said kindly.

Both Flandre and Meiling slurped up their bowls of ramen quickly, satisfying their hunger.

"Ahhh…That sure did hit the spot…" Meiling said in relief. "Thanks for the meal sir."

"Ha, no problem miss. Anythin else this old mule can do for ya two fine ladies?"

"Yes actually, my friend and I here are exploring Gensokyo you see, so it would be great to have a map. Do you know where we could find one?"

"A map eh? Hold on a sec." The food stand keeper said as he shuffled around under the counter, looking for something. "Will this do missy?" The stand keeper asked as he reemerged from under the counter, holding out a yellowed map of Gensokyo to Meiling.

"Yeah, that's perfect! How much will you take for it?" Meiling asked as she opened her wallet.

"It's on the house, you two're the first customers I've had in a while, and such pretty ones too! So please take it, it's the least this old man can do for the two of you fine ladies." The stand keeper said in a sweet but rough voice as he handed Meiling the aged map.

"Wow thank you so much sir!" Meiling thanked gratefully. "Thank the nice man now Flandre."

"Thanks for the map mister." Flandre said quietly.

"Gahahahaha, no problem little lass." The gatekeeper said in a jolly voice.

"Thank you for your generosity sir, good luck with your business." Meiling said to the stand keeper as she helped Flandre back onto the ground.

"No problem miss, good luck on your trip and be careful! Gensokyo can be a dangerous place y'know!" The stand keeper said to his now departing customers, as they headed out to their next destination, The Bamboo Forest of the Lost, and from there Eientei.

Their journey to the Bamboo Forest of the Lost was a short one, the forest was fairly close to the human village, making it a quick trip, even on foot. Like the name suggested, the Bamboo Forest of the Lost was a large forest made of bamboo stalks, it has many twisting and curving paths within it, making traversing the forest difficult. Only a select few know the forest's layout, making them ideal choices for guides.

"Well here we are The Bamboo forest of the Lost!" Meiling announced to no one in particular.

"Hey look, a sign China." Flandre said as she pointed to an old and withered looking sign.

"So there is, let's see what it says then, shall we?" Meiling said as she approached the old sign, looking like it could collapse any second. "Enter at ye own risk travelers, for those who enter shall meet their ends, and ye souls shall be lost for all eternity. Ye have a good day now." Meiling read aloud nervously.

"Huh…Well let's go China." Flandre said as she headed towards the forest, unfazed by the sign's warning.

"Say what!" Meiling cried in shock. "Shouldn't we reconsider this! I dunno about you, but having our souls lost for all eternity doesn't sound pleasant at all!"

"Yeah, but that'll only happen if we get lost silly." Flandre replies.

"It's called the Bamboo Forest of the Lost for a reason you know Flandre."

"So? If big sis and Saky made it, so can we!" Flandre replied stubbornly.

"But what if we're not so lucky?" Meiling asked.

"Don't worry so much Meiling…It's just a forest you chicken, we can always fly out if we get lost."

"Oh…Uh…Good point!" Meiling replied as she sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "And I'm no chicken!"

"Then let's go see some moon people!" Flandre shouted cheerfully as she pointed her Levaetein towards the forest's ominous looking entrance.

"Right, next stop Eientei!" Meiling said enthusiastically as she chased after her friend into the imposing Bamboo Forest of the Lost.

The forest seemed almost completely untouched by man, the many twisting dirt paths in the large forest being the only thing looking to be manmade. The rest of the forest remained undisturbed, with birds chirping and oddly enough, rabbits frolicking within the peculiar forest.

"Huh this isn't too bad! We might make it to Eientei soon if we're lucky!" Meiling said confidently.

"That's what I was trying to tell you at the entrance silly." Flandre said with a cute pout.

"Right, sorry for doubting you Flan." Meiling said with a laugh. "Well looks like there's a fork in the road here…" Meiling said as the two sure enough, came across a fork in the road. The pathways unfortunately unmarked, making it impossible to tell which way was the right direction to Eientei.

"Hmmmm…Which way to go…" Meiling mumbled to herself.

"That way China." Flandre said as she pointed to the path going left.

"I don't think picking by random is a good idea Flandre…" Meiling said skeptically.

"Oh…Well then are we supposed to do?" Flandre asked as she looked to her friend for an answer.

"Uh…Never mind." Meiling said sheepishly. "Left it is!" She shouted as the two walked down the rugged path.

As the two continued on through the forest, it seemed to get shadier and shadier as the two progressed along the path. This was due to the forest's bamboo shoots getting taller and taller, providing a great amount of shade from the sun. The two kept going and going, yet did not reach any signs of getting closer to Eientei.

"Well, I think we're lost." Meiling said bluntly as she looked at her map.

"I'm sorry Meiling…I got us lost…" Flandre responded sadly.

"Hey, hey, hey, it isn't your fault Flandre; I didn't have any better ideas y'know. Don't worry, we'll find our way through!" Meiling said reassuringly, giving her a thumbs up for good measure. Meiling's act of reassurance was quickly interrupted by an irritating smell entering her nose. "Ugh, it smells like smoke around here…" Meiling muttered to herself. "Wait smoke! That means there must be someone nearby and…"

"They might be able to show us where the moon people are!" Flandre said excitedly, finishing Meiling's sentence.

"Well let's go, before we lose em!" Meiling said as she took Flandre by the arm and followed the scent to its source. The two soon enough traced the scent to a small clearing in the forest. The source of the smoky stench was revealed to be a small fire; it was being fueled by a small pile of bamboo shoots. Sitting by the fire on a small log was a white haired woman; she shifted the bamboo stalks around in the fire using a stick with a look of boredom on her face. The woman's snow white hair was amazingly long; it looked like it reached all the way down to her ankles. She wore a large red and white bow on the top of her head, along with a few other smaller ribbons tied in her long mane of hair. For clothing she wore a long sleeved shirt that was a very light brown color, and long baggy dark red pants that had paper charms attached to them. Her long baggy pants were held up by a pair of red suspenders, making her pants look like a pair of overalls.

The suspender wearing woman looked up from the fire with her red colored eyes now focused on the pair of Flandre and Meiling in her presence. "Well…You two definitely aren't Keine." The suspender wearing woman stated plainly.

"Um hello! Sorry to disturb you mam, but would you happen to know where Eientei is? My friend and I are a little lost." Meiling asked the long haired stranger.

The woman just stared at the two, seemingly studying them, memorizing their every feature with a blank expression on her face. The three stood in silence, the woman just kept staring expressionlessly, as Meiling stared back with pleading eyes, and Flandre stared in wonderment at the woman.

"Hi my name is Flandre, what's yours?" Flandre asked, breaking the silence.

Meiling gave Flandre a puzzled look, while the strange woman gave her a look of mild interest. The woman waited a few seconds before finally responding, "Mokou, Fujiwara no Mokou." She stated, holding a hand out to Flandre.

Flandre gripped Mokou's hand with a smile and said, "It's nice to meet you Mokou, let's be friends."

Mokou gave Flandre a confused look, as if the notion of being friends was foreign to her before replying, "Sure kid, I'd like that."

Meiling just continued to observe the two interact in silence, smiling to herself as she watched Flandre make a new friend before joining the conversation. "So Miss Mokou-"

"Just Mokou will do." Mokou interrupted.

"Sorry, Mokou then, do you know of a way to Eientei?" Meiling asked. "Flandre and I are a bit lost."

Mokou paused and took a deep breath of air before answering, "Yeah, I know how to get there… But I'm kinda waiting for a friend, and we agreed to meet here you see."

"Friend?" Flandre asked curiously.

Mokou nodded in response, "My closest and most trusted friend. Once she finds her way here I'll show you the way to Eientei."

"Oh thank you so much Mokou! Sorry to take time away from your friend!" Meiling said, bowing to Mokou in thanks.

"Don't mention it; I got all the time in the world anyways." Mokou replied simply. "Well…My friend's probably going to be a while; she's probably doing some paper work or head-butting some kid for playing hooky or something…So you two may as well take a seat." Mokou said as she gestured to a log opposite to the one she sat on. Flandre and Meiling did as she suggested and joined her by the fire.

"Hey Mokou?" Flandre asked, trying to start a conversation

"Yeah kid?" Mokou replied, returning to poking the fire with her stick.

"What's your friend like?" Flandre asked curiously, kicking her legs back and forth slowly.

"Well…She's a pretty nice person, she likes kids and….She's the only person who's ever treated me like a normal human being." Mokou said with her gaze focused on the fire.

"Why?"

"Y'know, I never really thought of it kid. Maybe it's because she accepts others for who and what they are, maybe it's because she knows what it's like to be different…I really don't know. But I'm thankful for every day I see her, she makes my life…well worth living I guess." Mokou answered. "So what about you and your friend here kid? You and…?"

"Oh, right I never introduced myself! I'm Meiling; it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Right…So mind telling me the story behind your friendship kid?

"Well me and China became friends a long time ago…" Flandre began. "I never got to go outside and make friends before cuz big sis doesn't like me leaving the house…" Flandre said sadly. "But then China got a job from my big sis and China brought me food and talked to me and played with me…" Flandre said happily.

"Heh yeah…Being a maid wasn't a fun job, but that's the part that made it worthwhile." Meiling added.

"Huh that was nice of her." Mokou said as she gave a friendly look to Meiling.

"Yeah…But then big sis put her on guard duty so I didn't get to see her as much anymore…" Flandre said sadly.

"Sounds rough, but it looks like that problems solved now, since you're together now and all."

"Well kinda…Meiling snook me out of the mansion without telling big sis about it. So now we're exploring Gensokyo together." Flandre explained.

"Huh, you two must be pretty close for her to stick her neck out for ya." Mokou said with a smile.

"Making some new friends are we now Mokou?" A woman in a blue dress asked as she entered the clearing and joined in the conversation.

The blue garbed woman had silver colored hair with light blue highlights. She wore a red box shaped house that resembled some sort of building that looked quite odd for a choice of head wear. Her dress had short white sleeves and she also wore a red ribbon around her collar.

"Oh hey Keine." Mokou greeted as she got up from her seat. "And yeah, you could say that."

"Hello I'm-"

"Hong Meiling, gatekeeper of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and Flandre Scarlet, younger sister to Remilia Scarlet and the "Dirty Little Secret" of the Scarlet Devil Mansion." Keine stated with a smile. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, I'm Keine Kamishirasawa."

"Y-Yeah…How'd you know?" Meiling asked in surprise.

"Oh, I have the ability to read history you see. So I can see you're names and titles under the right circumstances if I concentrate hard enough." Keine explained.

"Wow, that's amazing! Isn't it Flandre? …Flandre?"

Flandre didn't respond to Meiling's calls, she simply stared at the ground, as if in a trance. Completely unresponsive to any attempts to get her attention.

"Flandre? Are you feeling alright?" Meiling asked, with worry in her voice.

"D…D-Dirty…?" Flandre said quietly.

"Flandre?" Meiling asked again, her concern growing.

"B…B-Big sis…th-thinks I'm dirty…?" Flandre stuttered, looking to be on the verge of tears.

"Hey kid, are you okay?" Mokou asked, sounding to share Meiling's concern.

Was it something I said?" Keine asked Mokou in a whisper, looking at Flandre with concerned eyes.

"Probably." Mokou answered bluntly. "Hey, we'll leave and give you two some privacy." Mokou said as she grabbed Keine by the shoulder and guided her towards the clearing's edge. "We'll wait at the edge of the clearing here for you two, okay? Let's go Keine."

Mokou and Keine left, leaving Flandre and Meiling alone in privacy. Meiling waited to be sure they had left before speaking. "Flandre, what's the matter?" Meiling said as she crouched down to her eye level and wiped a few of the tears trickling down the vampire's face. "You can tell me, it's alright."

"Th-That lady the f-funny hat...s…said th-that I was a d-dirty secret…" Flandre sniffed, tears flowing from her eyes. "D-Does big sister th-think I'm…d-dirty…? I-Is that why I have to live in the b-basement? B-Because sister th-think I'm d-dirty? B-Because she's…Ashamed o-of me…?"

"What! Flandre…I'm not sure why Miss Remilia would ever call you that, but I'm certain she isn't ashamed of you, she loves you dearly, you're her little sister after all." Meiling said soothingly as she wiped more of the tears from Flandre's eyes. "Now shall we rejoin Mokou and Keine now?"

"Y-Yeah…Th-thank you Meiling…" Flandre answered with a weak smile.

"Everything alright now kid?" Mokou asks as Flandre and Meiling rejoin both Keine and herself.

"Y-Yeah…S-sorry for making you wait…" Flandre apologized.

"It's alright little one; I'm the one who should be apologizing." Keine said as she crouched down to Flandre's height. "I shouldn't have referred to you by that title, I'm truly sorry."

"I-It's okay Miss funny hat…" Flandre says as she gives Keine a hug. Keine grows a puzzled luck on her face from the nickname she received, but then returned the embrace.

"Well…This is all touchy feely and all but Keine said your Remilia Scarlet's sister and gatekeeper, that true?" Mokou asks.

"Yeah that's right, why?" Meiling replies.

"That psychopath and her freaky maid tried killing me once; they kept going on about a "Trial of Guts" or something like that…" Mokou explained. "I just recognized the name is all."

"Hahahaha…Sorry about that…The mistress can be a little…You know…" Meiling said sheepishly.

"Eh, it's no skin off my nose. Besides you're not the one who did it, so don't apologize." Mokou shrugged off.

"Ahem…Mokou, sorry to interrupt but didn't you say you were going to guide these two to Eientei?" Keine asks.

"Oh right let's going." Mokou replies. "Follow me." Mokou order as she walks away from the clearing and into the bamboo forest. As the group traversed the maze like bamboo forest, Meiling and Flandre realized that Mokou reeked of smoke and ash. Causing the two to wonder if it was the fire or her scent they followed earlier. The four walked in silence, with only animals being heard throughout the forest.

"Hey Mokou?" Flandre asks, breaking the silence in the group once again.

"Yeah?" Mokou asks with her gaze still locked on the trail.

"How do you know how to get to Eientei?"

"I live here, so I had to learn how to get around here without getting lost, so I did."

"Oh…Why do you live here?"

"Eh, I don't fit in with regular folks, so I live here…Where I can avoid them…It being close to Eientei's just an added bonus I guess."

"Oh…Why don't you fit in then?"

"Flandre you shouldn't bother Mokou with personal questions." Meiling interrupted.

"Nah, it's alright. I like this kid." Mokou says to Meiling. "To answer your question kid, I don't fit in because I'm not human, and I'm not a youkai, so wherever I go I'm an outcast. People are usually afraid of me before they even get to know me…"

"Oh…I don't think you're scary." Flandre says with a smile. "I think you're nice."

Mokou gives Flandre a puzzled look, as if taken aback by being called nice, until she finally responds, "Thanks kid, I think you're pretty nice too." with a small smile making its way on her face.

As Mokou and Flandre conversed and began to get to know one another, another conversation began within the group.

"That's sweet isn't it?" Keine asks. "How well those too get along."

"Yeah, it really is. I'm glad Flandre is making friends, she never really got the chance to make any before." Meiling replies cheerfully.

"I'm also glad for Miss Scarlet; she seems like such a sweet girl." Keine says with a smile. "I'm surprised Mokou is opening up to her so much though, she's usually so shy around others…Perhaps it's because she feels like little Flandre is an outcast like herself…"

"Well I hope that'll change after this trip." Meiling says hopefully.

"Trip?" Keine asks, confused.

"Oh, me and Flandre are exploring Gensokyo you see, she never got the chance to love life and see the world like everyone else you see." Meiling explains.

"Does this mean Miss Remilia has let little Flandre out of the basement then?" Keine asked.

"No sadly…" Meiling replies sadly, "This trip was planned without her consent, if you wouldn't mind, could you keep this a secret?"

"Oh, of course." Keine replies happily. "It was a nice thing you did for the little Scarlet, I wouldn't dream of doing anything to hinder the two of you."

"You have my thanks Miss Kamishirasawa." Meiling thanked Keine gratefully.

"No need to thank me." Keine replied humbly. "If you two ever drop by the village, be sure to stop by the school house sometime, I'd love it if you visit. I'm usually only visited by Mokou and students with late homework assignments." Keine says with a laugh.

"Oh so you're a teacher then?"

"Yes, yes I am." Keine answers. "I'm a bit of a historian as well, which is why I have a good amount of knowledge on the areas in Gensokyo and the people who reside here."

"I see, that explains quite a bit. Say have you ever studied the history of China? There's a rich history there…"

"Alright…So let me get this straight here…Your older sister ordered you to live in her mansion's basement? For four hundred and ninety five years?" Mokou asks back at the other conversation.

"Yeah…" Flandre confirmed. "But it's only cuz she loves me…"

"Your sister shows her love in a weird way then kid." Mokou says. "I think I like her even less than I did before now."

"Please don't hate big sis, she's a great person, one of the greatest I know!"

"I don't hate her kid, there's only one person in this world that I hate…But at least you're out and about now right?"

"Yeah, thanks to China." Flandre says happily. "I just hope big sis won't be mad that I left…"

"Don't worry about that now kid, just worry about the here and now." Mokou replies.

"If you say so…"

"Well looks like we're here." Mokou announced to the group. "Just keep going forward and you should reach Eientei."

"Thank you so much for the help Mokou, without your help we'd still be lost." Meiling said with a bow.

"Er…Yeah…well it wasn't too much trouble…" Mokou said, looking slightly uncomfortable from Meiling's thanks.

"Thanks for the help Moky!" Flandre said cheerfully. "It was nice meeting you and Miss Kam-Kami…sheer…Miss Funny Hat!"

"No problem kid…Wait what? Moky…?" Mokou replied with a puzzled look.

"It was a pleasure meeting the two of you as well, may the winds of fortune blow at your backs!" Keine said as she waved the two goodbye.

"I hope we meet again!" Meiling shouted back to the two as they left.

"Well, weren't those two nice?" Keine asked Mokou happily once the pair of Flandre and Meiling was out of sight.

"Hmmmm, yeah." Mokou replied simply.

"I'm really glad you're making new friends Mokou." Keine said in a cheerful tone.

"Wh-What? Who are you my mom?" Mokou said as her face turned as red as her pants. "Let's just go already…alright?" Mokou said as she shoved her hands in her pockets and stormed off.

Keine just chuckled at her friend's immature response and followed after her. "Whatever you say Mokou, whatever you say…"

Eientei was a strange place, not only was it deep in the desolate Bamboo Forest of the Lost, but it also had many white fluffy rabbits frolicking about the courtyard in a carefree manner. Eientei itself was a large eastern style mansion, it looked to be thriving with activity as short childlike in appearance people with rabbit ears poking out of their heads were busy doing various tasks around the mansion.

"Wow! Look at all the fluffy bunny rabbits China!" Flandre exclaimed happily. "They're so cute and fluffy!"

"Haha, yeah they are. But we shouldn't disturb them; we wouldn't want to upset their owners." Meiling replied.

"Awwwww…" Flandre groaned in disappointment.

"Don't worry, if we find the owners we can ask if you can pet their rabbits, alright?"

"Oh, okay…"

"Good girl." Meiling said as she ruffled Flandre's hair. "Now…Where are the owners…?" Meiling asked herself as she slowly walked towards the mansion. "Maybe they're insi-yah!" Meiling exclaims as she trips and falls face first on the ground.

"China, are you okay!" Flandre asked worriedly.

"Urgh…Y-Yeah…Just tripped on something…" Meiling said as she got up and brushed herself off, noticing a rope on the ground, one end tied to a tree and the other end leading towards a bush. "What the heck is this rope doing out here…?" Meiling asked as she gazed towards the bush in suspicion.

Suddenly a youthful looking girl suddenly hopped out of the bush snickering in delight with a huge grin stretched across her face. "Wahahahaha! Walk much doofus!" The young girl said smugly as she laughed at Meiling.

The girl had wavy shoulder length black hair and like all the others walking around Eientei, she had a pair of white rabbit ears poking out from her head. Her eyes were a dark red color, and she wore a frilly pink nightgown like dress and a necklace with a carrot on it around her neck.

"Hey that wasn't nice meanie! Apologize to Meiling right now!" Flandre yelled at the perpetrator.

"Why should I? Ain't my fault the doofus can't walk right, and Tewi Inaba doesn't apologize to idiots." The girl named Tewi said with a snicker. "Besides why would I listen to a weirdo like you? Those wings are the weirdest things I've ever seen in Gensokyo! And that's sayin something!"

"They aren't weird! They're pretty! You, you…Bully!" Flandre yelled.

"Feh! You're definition of pretty is as weird as yer wings weirdo." Tewi replied smugly.

"Flandre, this brat isn't worth our attention, just ignore her." Meiling said as she put a hand on Flandre's shoulder.

"Alright Meiling…" Flandre said, taking her friend's advice.

"That's right! Go listen to mommy doofus and run away weirdo!" Tewi yelled at the two as they walked away. "Psh, their reactions weren't as funny as Reisen's, but those idiots were still good for a laugh. Heh, stupid freak…" Tewi said to herself as she hopped away, off to cause more trouble.

"Hmph, well wasn't that a nice welcoming party…" Meiling grumbled to herself. "Now to find the one's running this joint."

"Why don't we ask that bunny girl?" Flandre suggested.

"Feh, I'd prefer to never see that brat again…Even if it means not being able to find the head honcho here." Meiling replied.

"No not that meanie, that bunny girl over there." Flandre said as she pointed over to a light purple haired girl with rabbit ears coming out of her head. She appeared to be struggling with some boxes she's carrying. "Excuse me! Miss Bunny-rabbit!" Flandre yelled to the purple haired rabbit girl.

"Huh?" The rabbit girl said as she tilted her head to see who was calling her, but this action caused her to lose her balance as she fell over, causing all the contents of the box to spill out. "No, no, no, no, no, no!" The rabbit girl cried in distress. "Why must my luck be so rotten! What did I do to deserve this! Why! Why! WHY!" The rabbit girl yelled to no one in general as she quickly started to put the boxes contents back in the box.

"I'm sorry Miss Bunny-rabbit; let me help you fix it!" Flandre said as she crouched down by the rabbit girl and helped her pick up her things.

"Oh it's alright…I'm used to it…" The rabbit girl said as she continued to repack the box of its contents.

This rabbit girl was significantly different from Tewi and the others. For one she stood quite tall, reaching Meiling's height, even without her ears counted in the measurement and her eyes were also as red as Flandre's. She wore a black business suit and a purple short skirt, giving her the feel of someone who takes her work seriously, a stark contrast to the prankster they encountered earlier. She also had a womanly figure, something not seen in the others at the mansion.

"Thank you for your help little one." The purple haired rabbit girl thanked as she struggled to lift the box.

"Here, let me help you with that." Meiling said as she took the box from the struggling rabbit girl.

"Th-Thank you." The girl stuttered as she panted a bit.

"No problem! Where do you want them, Miss…?"

"Reisen Udonge Inaba." The girl introduced herself as. "Over by that shed would be fine…"

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance Miss Reisen." Meiling said cheerfully as she strolled over to the shed Reisen indicated her to.

"Hey Miss Bunny-rabbit." Flandre said as she tugged lightly at Reisen's skirt.

"Y-Yes little one?" Reisen asked timidly.

"Do you know where the moon people are? I really wanna meet them!" Flandre asks.

"Do you mean master Kaguya and Eirin?" Reisen asked. "Those two are the only lunarians here besides myself, they're basically the ones in charge here…"

"Yeah, if they're really from the moon! Can we visit them? Pretty please?" Flandre asked excitedly.

"Well…Master Kaguya is currently taking a nap and asked not to be disturbed…But I suppose it'd be alright for you to visit master Eirin…" Reisen answers.

"Yay! Thank you so much Miss bunny rabbit!" Flandre exclaims happily. "China, China! Miss Bunny-rabbit says we can visit a moon person!"

"Oh that's great, wouldn't want to go through all this trouble for nothing now would we?" Meiling replied as she rejoined the two from her quick errand.

"Well it's the least I can do for your help…Miss?"

"Hong Meiling, you can just call me Meiling, and my excited little friend here is Flandre Scarlet. Thank you for your help Miss Reisen."

"It's no problem…Scarlet…That name sounds familiar…" Reisen mumbles to herself. "Follow me; Miss Eirin should be inside doing some paper work…" Reisen said to the two as she guided them into the large mansion that is Eientei.

Eientei's interior was like its exterior, eastern styled. The rooms and walls were plain and empty aside from a few landscape paintings and furniture here and there. It was the complete opposite to the European styled mansion Flandre and Meiling called home, with its decorated halls and its bustling maids within the mansion. Reisen soon enough led the two to a door that led to Eirin's office.

Reisen tapped lightly on the door, "Master Eirin, there are two guests who would like to see you…" Reisen said in a polite manner.

An exasperated sigh could be heard from the room. "Send them in." An agitated voice could be heard saying from the other side of the door.

"Doctor Yagokoro will see you now, right this way please." Reisen says as she opens the door and motions for the two to enter.

Inside the room, there was a desk, one of the first things they've seen that wasn't eastern styled decor in the mansion. There were also several shelves sitting behind the desk, they looked like they were filled with medical supplies and books on medical research. Sitting behind the desk was a silver haired woman, she appeared to be in her early twenties, and like Reisen she had a womanly figure not seen in others around the mansion. The back of hair long white hair was tied into one large braid, and she wore a medic's cap that was red on one half and blue on the other. Her dress followed the same color scheme, alternating between red and blue. Her dress also seemed to have depictions of constellations stitched into it. Her expression was neutral if not a cold one; the two surmised that this was Reisen's master, Eirin.

"Hmmmm, and odd pair of visitors you've brought me today Udonge." Eirin stated plainly. "You may return to your duties now, I'll be speaking to our…guests privately." She said, putting emphasis on the word "guests."

"Um…A-Alright master…It was nice meeting you two." Reisen said quietly as she exited the room.

"So…What can I do for the two of you today? Soothe any searing pains? An organ transplant maybe? Or perhaps just an annual checkup?" Eirin asked professionally as she drummed her fingers against her desk.

"Huh? No, we're not for any of that icky stuff! We're here to visit the moon people!" Flandre says cheerfully.

"Well your meeting with one right now. What business do you have with me? Speak." Eirin asked coldly, her eyes fixed on Flandre's wings, as if pondering if they were artificial or not.

"Oh um…Well someone I know told me a story about moon people living here…So I wanted to meet them myself…" Flandre answered timidly.

"Well now you have, so unless you're here on official business, get out of my office, now." Eirin said without a hint of emotion behind her words.

"Hey! We went through a lot to get here, all we wanted to do was see the lunarians here and learn about them, there's no need to be so rude! It's not like we're disrupting your business here!" Meiling shouted angrily.

"I beg to differ. You two are wasting my valuable time with your petty little visit, which is disrupting me from doing my work. Want to learn about lunarians little girl? Read a book. Now both of you get out of my office, I won't waste anymore of my time entertaining you." Eirin ordered coldly.

"…Very well, let's go Flandre." Meiling said to her companion.

"Okay Meiling…" Flandre replies as she follows her to the door. "Sorry for bothering you Miss moon lady…" Flandre said before she closed the door behind her.

The two left Eirin to her work alone, but it was swiftly interrupted by yet another visitor. A black haired girl looking to be in early twenties like Eirin entered the room without bothering to knock on the door, her black her was a mess, making it look like she had just gotten out of bed. She wore a pink robe with long pink sleeves with a line of small white bows going across the chest area of the robe, she also wore a long skirt with the robe, and it went down all the way to her feet.

"Ah, good morning Eirin!" The black haired woman greeted cheerfully.

"Good afternoon, Princess Kaguya." Eirin replied with her attention still focused on her work.

"So how are the bills looking, any improvements?" Kaguya asked as she stretched her arms.

"No unfortunately…Your outside world toys depleted nearly all of our savings…and business has been slow as of late. Our coffers are almost empty Princess."

"Well that wasn't the response I was looking for…"

"I'm sorry Princess, but there's little we can do about the situation…Really Princess, I thought I told you specifically NOT to waste all our money on that outside world junk."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…Let's not worry about the details here let's focus on paying these debts off shall we?" Kaguya said dismissively with the wave of her hand.

"Right…Easier said than done. Unless a large sum of money jumps into our laps soon, we're going bankrupt." Eirin said unenthusiastically.

"Mail call!" a voice shouted from outside the mansion, interrupting the two.

"I got it." Kaguya said as she went to go retrieve the mansion's mail. She quickly returned, reading a newspaper intently.

"Oh Eirin…I believe I just found our solution!" Kaguya said cheerfully.

"Oh please, do enlighten me." Eirin said in a tone screaming of disinterest.

"Right here it says there's a bounty being held by Remilia Scarlet! She's loaded with dough Eirin! If we catch her bounty, we'll definitely get more than enough to pay off our debts!" Kaguya said in excitement.

"How much does this bounty pay?" Eirin asked with her interest now piqued.

"Let's see here…One thousand yen!" Kaguya cries in shock.

"That's much more than we need…I could buy quite a bit of new equipment for my experiments with what's left over…Now what's our quarry?"

"Hmmmm…Looks like some red headed lady in green with a goofy hat named Hong Meiling, and a blonde in red with some freaky ass wings named Flandre Scarlet…Looks like Remilia's holding a bounty on a relative, talk about issues huh?"

"That sounds vaguely familiar…" Eirin mumbled. "Is there a picture we can look at? Pictures say a thousand words after all…"

"Yeah, here take a look." Kaguya said as she handed Eirin the newspaper.

"What the…Those two came here less than ten minutes ago." Eirin said, slightly surprised. "How well the table has been set for us, those two will most likely be in the bamboo forest right now, ripe for the picking…It'll be like shooting fish in a barrel." Eirin said as a grin grew on her face.

"Say what! Then let's go get them already before someone else nabs them! I want that money!" Kaguya shouted impatiently.

"Yes…Let's hunt down our prey before someone else tries to steal our bounty." Eirin said as she grabbed her bow and arrows sitting at the foot of her desk and exited the room along with Kaguya. The two's minds flooded with merry thoughts of what they would do with the money once they hunt down their quarry and turned them over to Remilia.

* * *

**Author's Note: Hoo nelly, I took quite a bit of time on this chapter...This chapter is actually longer than all the others combined. Yikes. Well sorry for the wait, I spent quite a bit of time making sure everything was written to my liking, I more than once erased a paragraph because it just didn't feel right to me. Anyways, I really love how this chapter came out, it introduces two of my favorite characters in the series, Mokou and Keine. Oh and the Eientei cast and Aya too. I know Keine's ability isn't to read history, but instead consume and hide it, but I thought it made sense, plus it was the best way to lead into that scene in my opinion...So Keine gets a minor power boost. Well I hope you enjoyed it and look forward to the next chapter, which is actually close to being finished...And I gotta shut up now, see ya next time.**


	6. Chapter 6: The Hunted

"Back at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, things were finally starting to go back to normal from the revelation that the mansion's dirty little secret has left the mansion and is now out in public along with the mansion's gatekeeper, all without the consent of the mansion's mistress. Remilia has calmed down considerably from upon hearing the news and returned to lounging in her study, sipping her evening tea. Sakuya stood at her side, waiting patiently to serve her master in any way possible.

"Mistress, forgive me for asking but why did you not send me to handle the situation? I'm more than capable of handling Meiling, and I've reasoned with the young mistress before. I'm sure I could-" Sakuya said until she was cut off by the wave of Remilia's hand.

"No you couldn't Sakuya. Meiling may act like a fool, but there is a reason why she is my gatekeeper. But even if you did manage to defeat her, Flandre wouldn't be in any mood for reasoning if any harm fell before Meiling. Besides Sakuya I know you're no slouch in the combat department, but Flandre and Meiling are far out of your league, it'd be a wasted effort to send you after them."

"But then why the bounty? The young mistress would listen to your words if you spoke with her." Sakuya asks.

"Because Sakuya, we have no idea where those two went off to, I doubt anyone will be able to capture or defeat them, but any of those interested in the reward might flush them out and once they do, we will swoop in and collect them." Remilia explained coolly. "Those two will be within our grasps soon enough, and once they are…Meiling will regret ever disobeying the Scarlet Devil."

* * *

"Those moon people weren't nice at all…they were a bunch of meanies…" Flandre grumbled as she and Meiling walked side by side in the Bamboo Forest of the Lost. The sun began to set, making the sky a brilliant orange color, and causing the bamboo stalks to cast even longer shadows.

"Yeah, guess they don't enjoy having tourists visit." Meiling said to her disappointed companion as she lugged their bags on her back.

"I didn't even get to ask if the moon was really made of cheese or not…" Flandre said sadly as she stared at the ground. "But Moky and Miss Funny hat were nice, they were sweet like cotton candy! Oh and Miss Bunny-rabbit was nice too!" Flandre perked up.

"Our trip wasn't a complete waste then now eh?" Meiling said with a cheerful laugh. "Hmmmm?" Meiling said in confusion as she stopped in her tracks.

"What's wrong Meiling?" Flandre asked in confusion.

"Good day Miss Scarlet, and you too Miss Hong. A fine evening we're having, are we not?" Greeted a familiar voice. Standing in the path before Meiling and Flandre was Eirin, who had an eerie smile etched on her face; she gripped a large bow at her side. Standing beside her was an unfamiliar face to the two. "And to answer your question Miss Scarlet, no the moon is not made of cheese."

"What're you doing here moon lady? Are you here to apologize?" Flandre asked curiously.

"How do you know our names doctor Yagokoro? I don't remember either of us ever giving our names to you." Meiling asked in a strict and demanding tone, but without a hint of anger in her voice.

"Ooh, she's one sharp tack isn't she Eirin?" Eirin's friend asked. "Just like the article said she is."

"Article? What nonsense are you talking about?" Meiling asks, keeping an intimidating demeanor.

"How dare you speak to me before I have addressed you? You lowly peasant! You're in the presence of Princess Kaguya Houraisen!" Eirin's companion screeched angrily.

"Well excuuuuuuuuusssssssssssssse me princess." Meiling says mockingly. "I couldn't care less about your titles, now what are you blabbering about!"

"How dare you mock me! You…You…" Kaguya snarled in anger. "Hmph, well I suppose the cat's out of the bag now, isn't it? I suppose I'll just be up front about it then. You two have quite the bounty on your adorable wittle heads, and we're here to collect it!" Kaguya explains smugly.

"Bounty? Who'd put a bounty on us?" Flandre asks as she ponders Kaguya's words.

"Your sister." Eirin answers bluntly.

"W-What? Why?" Flandre asks in shock.

"Oh who knows? In the interview with Remilia, she said that you're an insane monster that's bent on destruction and is a significant threat to all living things, so that might be one reason there." Eirin says coldly. "But really, I don't care if you're a destructive monster or a cute innocent little girl, all I care about is the reward. Now you two can come along quietly or we can do this the hard way."

"W-What? Big sister…thinks I'm…a monster?" Flandre asks, looking to be in shock.

"Don't listen to her Flandre! She's lying, you're no monster!" Meiling said, trying to comfort her distressed friend. "And you two, you won't lay a finger on her! Be warned fiends, Hong Meiling is no easy prey!" Meiling shouted to the two as she took a fighting stance. "Stand back Flandre, I shall deal with these two!"

"The hard way then? Excellent." Eirin replied as a sadistic grin grew on her face and loaded her bow with an arrow.

"Feh! This'll be a piece of cake you piece of filth!" Kaguya yelled as she took on a fighting stance as well. "This won't end well for you Chinese girl, just thank whatever deities you worship that the bounty specifically said to keep you alive."

"The righteous will always prevail, evildoers!" Meiling proclaimed proudly.

"You won't be saying that once I kick your righteous ass!" Kaguya shouted as she charged at Meiling.

Kaguya attempts to punch Meiling in the face, but she quickly dodges the punch by sidestepping and quickly countered with a kick to Kaguya's ribs. Kaguya yelped in pain from Meiling's powerful strike as she staggered back from the impact.

"Yeah go get her Meiling!" Flandre cheered as she watched her companion battle Kaguya furiously, causing her to be unaware of Eirin taking aim at the small vampire with her bow.

"Good night little vampire…" Eirin said to herself smugly as she focused her aim on Flandre, but her concentration was quickly broken when her skull was impacted by another. Causing her a searing amount of pain as blood gushed from her head.

"Blast it!" Eirin yelled as she reeled back in pain, holding her wounded head with her open hand.

"You won't be laying a hand on that child, Doctor Yagokoro." The perpetrator of the attack said, revealing herself as Keine. She stood before Eirin defiantly as blood dripped from her forehead as well.

"Don't interfere you damned half beast, or I won't be able to guarantee you that your students will have a teacher tomorrow!" Eirin growled in fury as her cold eyes met Keine's determined ones. Keine remained silent and defiant in response Eirin's threat.

Meanwhile Meiling struggled against Kaguya as the two locked hands and attempted to topple one another over with sheer strength alone. Meiling was slowly being pushed, inch by inch, even as she locked her feet into a firm stance. Meiling panted in exhaustion as beads of sweat slid down her face as she struggled against her opponent. Kaguya was also sweating profusely, as she struggled against Meiling's strength; the two were at a standstill.

"Grrr…R-Ready to give u-up now you d-damned peasant?" Kaguya asked as she tiredly struggled to knock Meiling down with her weight.

"A-As if…Y-You pompous brat…" Meiling replied in defiance.

"Th-That's a shame, you c-could have made things so much e-easier on y-yourselves…" Kaguya said with a weak smirk. "Y-You…and th-that little d-demon…You'll make me filthy rich once I hand you over to Remilia!"

"Not gonna happen moon bitch." A familiar voice calmly said to Kaguya.

"Huh?" Was all Kaguya could say in response before she was kicked in the side of the head, sending her flying into some bamboo shoots from the impact.

"D-Damn it…Who d-did that…?" Kaguya asked wearily as she spat blood from her mouth, rubbing her head from where the kick landed

"Attacking a little girl and her friend Kaguya? Unprovoked no less, that's a new low Kaguya even for you, you damn bitch." Mokou said, hands resting in her pockets, looking down on her fallen foe.

"M-Mokou…" Kaguya growled.

"Mokou! What are you doing here?" Meiling asked in surprise from Mokou's sudden appearance.

"Oh you know, just in the neighborhood. Couldn't help but hear the moon bitch here screeching like an idiot." Mokou said as she gestured to Kaguya with her thumb. "So Keine and I decided to see what she was screaming about, and saw that she and Eirin were attacking you, and here we are."

"Thank goodness you came…I don't think I could have taken them both at once and keep Flandre safe…You have my thanks Mokou." Meiling said gratefully.

"Don't worry about it, that's what friends are for." Mokou said with a small smirk. "You and the kid get out of here; me and Keine will take care of these lunatics."

"Are you sure Mokou?" Meiling asked in concern.

"Positive, don't worry I've been kicking Kaguya's sorry ass for longer than I can remember, and Keine's no slouch either. We'll be fine, just go."

"If you insist! Thank you Mokou, for everything!" Meiling said to Mokou as she ran to Flandre.

"Flandre, we're getting out of here! Let's go!" Meiling shouted to her friend as she closed the distance between each other.

"But what about Moky? And Miss Funny hat?" Flandre asked concernedly.

"They'll be fine; we have to go now Flandre, alright?" Meiling asked as she took her by the hand.

"Alright Meiling…" Flandre said in defeat.

The two then lifted off the ground and began to fly out of the forest until Meiling heard Mokou yell her name, "Meiling!" causing Meiling to stop in midflight at her call. "Take care of her…She's a good kid…Got it?"

"I intended to, Good luck Mokou!" Meiling said as she and Flandre flew out of the bamboo forest.

"Ha, you don't need luck when you're as strong as me." Mokou said as her parting words to Meiling.

"Finished?" Kaguya asked impatiently, now recovered from Mokou's kick.

"Yeah, thanks for waiting, it was…very out of character of you." Mokou replied.

"Oh a princess does need to mind her manners…But now that you're done talking to your freak-show friends and I have your undivided attention…I'm going to inflict an unbelievable amount of pain on you. Oh won't that be fun!" Kaguya asked as a huge grin grew on her face.

"Just being in your company is an unbelievable amount of pain." Mokou replied nonchalantly.

Kaguya just laughed in response, her laughter seeming to be without a trace of sanity. "Oh my you're a cheeky little monkey…Let's see how cheeky you are after I tear off all of your flesh, piece by piece!" Kaguya shouted with sadistic glee as she charged at Mokou in a bloodthirsty rage.

Meanwhile, Flandre and Meiling were flying their way across the Bamboo Forest of the Lost. Flandre was being uncharacteristically quiet, looking down at the bamboo forest with a solemn expression. Meiling looked to her friend with concern, until she broke the silence between one another.

"Flandre, don't worry…Mokou and Keine will be fine. I promise, they're strong, they won't lose." Meiling said reassuringly.

"…It's not that Meiling…I know Moky and Keine will beat those mean moon people up, good guys always win."

"Then what's wrong Flandre? You look upset."

"It's what that doctor lady said…D-Do you think it's true…? Th-That big sis th-thinks I'm a…m…monster?" Flandre asked as she avoided eye contact with Meiling.

"Don't be ridiculous! You're no monster and Miss Remilia knows it!" Meiling said reassuringly. "That Eirin woman said the things she did for some sort of sick thrill…It's amazing how people find happiness in other people's misery…"

"B-But what if she wasn't lying? Wh-What if…It's true…? That big sister really does think I'm…" Flandre asked in a stutter, unable to finish her sentence.

"…I don't know, but if we find a newspaper with that article they talked about…We'll have our answer. But no matter what a piece of paper says, you're no monster. You're my friend, alright?" Meiling said with a smile.

"Th-Thank you Meiling. You're my best friend…" Flandre said quietly with a weak smile.

The two eventually made it away from the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, and away from the impending danger of Kaguya and Eirin. The sun had set, so Meiling had decided it was time to retire for the day and make camp. Meiling quickly set up a tent big enough to fit the two of them within it, and started a fire to keep them warm during the cold night. The two ate slowly from their small provision of food in an eerie silence.

"So Flandre…Um where do you want to go next?" Meiling asked the vampire as she took a sip from her bottle of blood.

"I don't know…" Flandre answered quietly as she took her lips away from the bottle.

"Well no need to come up with a destination right now, we can decide tomorrow, there's plenty of time and plenty of places to go to." Meiling said happily. "Though we'll have to watch our steps now that Miss Remilia has that bounty out on us…"

"Yeah…But we can take them! Right, China?" Flandre said happily.

"Of course! No bounty hunters will defeat us!" Meiling said as she smacked her fist against the palm of her hand. "Anyways Flandre, it's getting late, we better turn in so we can wake up bright and early and decide what our next destination will be."

"Okay Meiling…" Flandre replied as she went into the tent, with Meiling following closely behind. The two quickly changed into their night clothes and threw blankets on top of themselves.

"Good night Meiling…" Flandre said sleepily as she rested her head on her pillow and closed her eyes.

"Sleep tight Flandre." Meiling said in a motherly tone.

* * *

Flandre drifted off into a peaceful slumber, in her sleep Flandre usually had two different dreams, in one she would dream of playing with her older sister happily in the mansion together, or she would dream of the day Remilia had ordered her to stay in the mansion's basement. But this was not one of those dreams, this was a dream Flandre had not yet experienced before. In this strange dream, Flandre stood within a large field of white flowers, the ground and sky were also just as white as the flowers strangely enough. The ground Flandre stood upon was covered with shallow water, submerging both of her bare feet completely. Flandre looked down at her reflection in the water and noticed she was not wearing her regular red dress, but a white one piece dress, her mobcap was also gone, but her hair was still in its usual style except it was tied in a white ribbon rather than a red one, making everything in the dream besides Flandre herself white.

Within the distance standing in the white flower field was another girl, being close to the same size as Flandre. She also wore a white one piece dress, and had wavy purple shoulder length hair, and a pair of leathery bat like wings protruding from her back. Flandre gasped in excitement in realization of who this figure was.

"Remy!" Flandre cried in joy as she ran to her elder sister happily, causing ripples to form in the water with each step. Once Flandre had reached her sister, she gave her a large hug and cried tears of joy. "Oh big sister! I-I've missed you so much!"

Remilia stood by unresponsively, accepting Flandre's hug, but not returning her sister's affection. "Flandre." Remilia said simply in response.

"I love you so much big sister…I haven't seen you in so long…I-I thought you had forgotten all about me…" Flandre said affectionately as her hug's grip strengthened. "Is something wrong big sis? Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Flandre, why did you leave the basement? I thought I told you to stay there Flandre." Remilia said almost emotionlessly.

"Huh? But big sister I-"

"You should have stayed in the basement Flandre; I'm very disappointed in you."

"I-I'm sorry Remy…I…I-"

"The basement is the only place suitable for a disgusting monster like you, Flandre."

"Wh-Wha…Re-Remy…"

"A monster like you would only destroy everyone and everything if you aren't contained."

"But-But…Remy…"

"Don't stutter you little beast! You'll address me by my name, Remilia!" Remilia roared in anger.

"I-I'm s-sorry Re-Remilia…I…I just wanted to…" Flandre stuttered as hot tears flowed from her eyes and dripped into the shallow water the two stood in.

"I don't care for your excuses you little demon, you deliberately disobeyed me and went against my wishes. You have to be punished for your disobedience you dog."

"Wh-What do you m…mean s-sister?"

"Shh, shh…Don't worry my dear little sister…it'll all be over soon…" Remilia said in a calm and soothing whisper as she lightly stroked Flandre's cheek.

Flandre suddenly felt an intense amount of pain in her chest, and fell to her knees in agony. Flandre's eyes drifted down to her chest, where an ebon black blade had impaled her chest, causing a great amount of blood to flow from the wound, coloring her dress and the flowers near her a brilliant crimson red.

"Si…Sister…Wh-Why?" Flandre stuttered in pain as her life slowly bled away.

"Good night…little sister." Remilia said in a comforting voice as she lightly kissed Flandre on the cheek as she lost consciousness.

* * *

**Author's Note: Boy this chapter was fast one, To explain why this one came out so quickly here's to reasons, 1. I write all of my chapters in a notebook then rewrite it on computer.(Yes weird, I know.) So I actually had this chapter almost completely finished before I posted the last one. 2. The dialogue flowed from my mind naturally for some reason...Especially with the interaction between Mokou and Kaguya, that was a pretty fun segment to write. But my favorite scene to write was oddly enough the dream scene...Which is by far the darkest bit in this story thus far. Funny huh? On an another note, thank you to all the encouraging feedback everyone! I really appreciate it! I hope you enjoy future chapters! Peace!  
**


	7. Chapter 7: A Moonlit Meeting

Flandre woke up drenched in a cold sweat, gasping for air. She slowly looked down her nightgown, checking for any sign of injury, gingerly rubbing the spot where she had been impaled in her nightmare. Meiling just remained sleeping peacefully next to her, snoring quietly as she mumbled in her sleep. Once Flandre had calmed down and realized it was all a terrible dream, she flung off her blanket and left the tent, no longer able to sleep. She sat down by the slowly diminishing fire, which was now much smaller in size than it was before, staring at it with a solemn expression.

The only sounds that could be heard were the sounds of insects and other animals doing their nightly activities before the morning came, which was now only a few hours away. As Flandre sat by the small fire, she tried keeping her mind off of her terrible nightmare, but to no avail, her mind slowly kept going back to the words her sister had spoken and the images of her being impaled by her. Her thoughts were interrupted by a quiet mumbling noise, sounding like someone was talking to themselves in the forest. As the voice got closer, the words became much clearer, and Flandre make out everything the voice said.

"Hmmmm, a tent? What human is dumb enough to set up camp in a forest here?" A voice asked. "Heehee, maybe I should prank them, that'd be lotsa fun!" The voice said with gleeful excitement.

The voice got closer and closer until a short green haired boy came into Flandre's sight; he had short green hair with small antennae like things coming out of his head and wore a white long sleeved shirt and a pair of baggy blue shorts. Around his neck hung a weirdly shaped black cape that had red lining, it's shaping almost made it look like the wings of some sort of insect. He also had several fireflies flying alongside him, seemingly following him wherever he walked.

"Oh, it's a youkai camp…I guess humans aren't as dumb as I thought then…" The boy mumbled to himself.

Flandre gave the unusual boy an odd look as he stared at her back, as if studying her before she asked. "Who're you?"

"Huh? Me?" The boy asked as he pointed to himself.

"Yeah, you." Flandre confirmed.

"I'm Wriggle Nightbug!" The boy shouted squeakily, revealing himself to actually be a girl, while pointing to herself with her thumb. "And who the heck're you?"

"I'm Flandre…"

"Flandre huh? Y'know…That's a really weird name." Wriggle said as she approached her. "So what're you doing here? I don't remember ever seeing you around here before." Wriggle asked as she plopped down next to Flandre.

"Ummm…Me and my friend are going on an adventure…and we're sleeping here for the night." Flandre explained timidly.

"An adventure? That's so…AWESOME!" Wriggle exclaimed in awe. "I wish I could go on adventures too! I'd go beat up super villains, and save damsels in distress and go to all kinds of places…Man you're lucky!"

"Th-Thanks, I think it's cool too. My friend and I are gonna explore Gensokyo and have lotsa fun..." Flandre replied.

"So…Where is your friend?" Wriggle asked as she looked around the forest. "I don't see her anywhere, is she hiding?"

"No…She's sleeping." Flandre said as she pointed towards the tent where Meiling rested.

"Oh, so why're you up then?" Wriggle asked curiously as a firefly perched itself on her outstretched finger.

Flandre quickly grew nervous from Wriggle's very simple question, with memories of her nightmare quickly resurfacing. "I-I can't sleep is all…" Flandre replied nervously, too embarrassed to give her the details.

"Hmmmm, alrighty then…" Wriggle replied suspiciously. "Hey, if you can't sleep then how about I keep you company then?" Wriggle asked excitedly.

"Oh um…You don't have to…I'm used to being alone…" Flandre replied sadly.

"All the more reason to keep you company then!" Wriggle exclaimed cheerfully. "It's my job as a defender of peace to help people, no matter how small their problems are!" Wriggle insisted.

"Defender of peace?" Flandre asked in confusion.

"Yeah, cool name right? I came up with it myself!" Wriggle said cheerfully. "Me and my bug friends go all around Gensokyo helping those in need and stuff like that, pretty neat right?"

"So you're like a super hero?"

"A super dooper hero! I mean…I haven't done anything big yet like beating up bad guys or solving incidents, but I help our fellow youkai out with small problems." Wriggle explained ecstatically.

"Wow, that's really cool!" Flandre said in admiration.

"R-Really? No one's ever said that before…All of my friend's think I'm stupid when I tell them about it…They think it's dumb to run around helping people when you could go and prank them instead." Wriggle said sadly. "But I gotta keep helping people to give insects a good name so people will stop squishing them!"

"What do you mean?" Flandre asked in confusion.

"Well all my insect friends…They get killed by people every day…I try to keep them safe, but it's no use. No matter how hard I try one of my friends die every single day…Just today Greg and Lulu were killed by insect pesticides…" Wriggle said sadly, looking down at the ground in grief. "So you see…If I can make a good name for insects by being a defender of peace, then insects will have a better reputation here in Gensokyo and no one will want to hurt them!"

"Wow…That's an admirable goal…"

"Thanks! I was inspired by this guy named Spider Man, I read about him in a weird outside world book I got from this weird store…Anyways he swings around using these web thingys like a spider, giving insects everywhere a better reputation!" Wriggle explained gleefully. "I just wish I could do that…It'd make my entrances so much cooler. I guess flying on to the scene will have to do for now…Maybe Miss Yamame could help me… " Wriggle mumbled under her breath.

"Wow! That's amazing! I didn't think humans could shoot webs like spiders!" Flandre said with eyes full of awe.

"That's what I thought too! I'm glad there's a human in the world who knows bugs aren't bad! I wish all humans were like Spider Man…Anyways I gotta go, sorry. I promised my ant friends I'd go and help them rebuild their anthill, some human kids keep destroying them…It was nice meeting you Miss Flan!" Wriggle said as she gave her a salute. "If you ever want to join Wriggle's defenders of peace, just give me a call!" and with that, Wriggle jumped up on a tree branch, nailing the landing without a hitch.

"Bye Wriggle! Thanks for keeping me company, I hope I see you again soon!" Flandre said as she waved off her new friend.

"No problem! It's what we defenders of peace do! May we meet again!" Wriggle said as she waved back, then jumped off onto another tree's branch, and then another, jumping from tree to tree until she was out of sight.

* * *

"Sakuya, is there any news on the hunt?" Remilia asked the head maid as she brought her a dish of cookies and tea, with Remilia sitting in a comically oversized chair at the head of the dining room's long table.

"No unfortunately not milady." Sakuya replied, all the while retaining her neutral expression as she set the dish of treats before her. "But I shall inform you of any news regarding the bounty."

"Hmmmm, Very well Sakuya." Remilia said as a discontent expression made its way on her face. "Now, how has the search for a replacement gatekeeper come along?"

"Well milady…There has only been one person interested in the position, but there's something a little…off about her." Sakuya replied as she poured her employer a cup tea.

"I could care less if there's something "off" about her Sakuya, just so long as she does her job. Now bring her to me at once." Remilia grumbled impatiently as she began drumming her fingers against the table.

Sakua paused before replying, "Yes mistress…" and exited the room, a few minutes passed before Sakuya had returned, now with a girl draped in black tailing her. Sakuya stopped before the table, giving a bow to her mistress before returning to her side, with the girl in black taking a seat across from Remilia.

The girl wore a white blouse with a black vest over it, and a just as black skirt. She wore a small red ribbon in her shoulder length blonde hair and her eyes, like Remilia's, were red.

"Rumia reporting for duty boss!" The girl shouted, giving a salute to Remilia from across the table.

"Sakuya…Who is this girl?" Remilia asked in a whisper.

"Rumia milady, she's a friend of that ice fairy that lives nearby…She was the only one interested in the job. Otherwise I'd never consider hiring an associate of that idiot." Sakuya replied in a hushed tone.

"Hmmmm…Nothing seems to be off about her besides her choice of friends…I don't see what you meant Sakuya…" Remilia whispered back.

"You'll soon see what I mean milady." Sakuya replied with a sigh.

"Ahem, so…Miss Rumia, I hear you're interested in a being a gatekeeper here at my humble abode. Now tell me, what qualifications do you have?" Remilia inquired as she took a sip of tea

"Rumia's qualifications? Rumia needs no qualifications! Rumia fights like tiger! Like bear! Rumia has strength of ten men! We don't need Meiling, because Rumia is pretty amazing." Rumia replied proudly.

"Hmph, now I see what you meant by "off" Sakuya…" Remilia mumbled to her head maid. "Well those are…quite impressive skills you have Miss Rumia."

"Rumia agrees! Rumia is impressive! The impressivest! Rumia will guard gates with the eyes of a hawk! Because Rumia is pretty extraordinary!"

"Yes, that's a word for it…" Remilia said under her breath. "Very well Rumia, we'll see how you do as our gatekeeper for the time being…Sakuya, please give our new employee her uniform and explain to her how we do things around here, will you?"

"…Yes milady." Sakuya replied as she dug out a green beret from her apron, looking exactly like the one Meiling wears. "Here you are Miss Rumia, wear this at all times while on duty. You will work from sunrise to sunset each day, with a one hour lunch break. You'll be provided three meals a day and nothing more. We'll arrange a living quarters for you here at the mansion as soon as we clear some space in one of our guest rooms. Now if you have any questions, ask them now." Sakuya explained in a professional manner. Rumia's hand shot up as soon as Sakuya's explanation was finished. The head maid gave an exasperated sigh. "Yes Rumia?"

"Do you serve human here? Rumia likes taste of human; it's like a party in Rumia's mouth!" Rumia asked cheerfully.

"No." Sakuya replied coldy.

"Oh…Rumia disappointed…Oh! Can Rumia get her hat in black? Rumia doesn't like the color of baby-barf green! It clashes with Rumia's pretty black dress!" Rumia said as she played with her skirt.

"…I'll see what I can do." Sakuya replied with a stressed sigh. "Go wait outside for a moment, I'll show you where your post is momentarily."

"Yes mam! Rumia shall wait patiently for your return like a faithful dog for his master!" Rumia said with a salute, now wearing the beret Sakuya had given her and exited the room.

Sakuya waited for the doors to close completely before asking, "Mistress, are you sure hiring her was a good idea?"

"I don't know Sakuya, but I'm in no mood to keep looking for a replacement gatekeeper, I have enough things to worry about right now the way it is." Remilia replied as she stared out the window. "Hmmmm, morning has come…I'll be retiring for the day Sakuya, be sure to keep things up and running in my absence." Remilia said as she got up from her oversized chair and strutted off.

"Yes milady, have a good rest." Sakuya replied as her employer exited the room.

* * *

"Ugh…Is it morning already…?" Meiling asked herself groggily as she wiped her out with her arm. "Well…time to get up Flan…" Meiling said as she rolled over to wake up her companion, but all she found was an abandoned blanket and pillow. "Flandre? Where'd ya go!?"

Meiling frantically crawled out of the tent in search of her missing friend. "Flandre!? Flandre where are you!?" Meiling called.

"Why are you yelling China?" Flandre asked, causing Meiling to jump in surprise.

Meiling turned around and found Flandre, who was sitting next to the now ashy remains of their fire from the night before, still in her nightgown. "Oh there you are. You're up awfully early today Flandre." Meiling greeted as she took a seat next to her.

"U-Um yeah! I-I guess I am!" Flandre replied nervously, not wanting to tell Meiling the truth that she was actually up still, not being able to sleep at all after her horrifying nightmare.

"Huh, you don't look so good…You've got bags under your eyes." Meiling informed as she pushed a few stray hairs from the small vampire's face.

"I do? I didn't even notice! I feel fine, really!" Flandre lied.

"If you say so…Anyways, have you thought of a place to visit next?" Meiling inquired.

"Oh why don't you pick China?"

"Really, are you sure?"

"Yeah…I can't make up my mind so go ahead and pick." Flandre replied.

"Hmmmm…Well Miss Sakuya once told me about this shinigami at the Sanzu River, she told me that she had worse work ethics than me." Meiling said with a laugh. "That could be an interesting place to see, and I kind of want to meet this shinigami she talked about…"

"That sounds like a fun place to go!" Flandre said ecstatically.

"Then it's settled! Next stop the Sanzu River!"

"Yeah! But um…I gotta change first." Flandre said with a blush.

"Oh right…Me too." Meiling said sheepishly. "Here you go change in the tent first; I'll make sure no one's peeking."

"Thank you Meiling." Flandre said happily as she entered the tent.

"No problem." Meiling replied as she stood at the tent's entrance with her back to the tent, making sure no bystanders were peeking.

A good ten minutes passed before Flandre came out from the tent, now clothed in her usual red vest and skirt with a cheerful smile on her face. "Sorry for making you wait so long Meiling…It's hard to change my clothes with my wings…" Flandre apologized.

"No sweat, I'll just change quickly and we can go after we take the tent down." Meiling replied as she entered the tent and came back out in five minutes, fully clothed. She then proceeded to quickly take down their tent and pack it in her bag for future use.

"Looks like we're all set to go now, are you ready to go Flan?" Meiling asked as she picked up their bags and lugged them over her shoulder.

"Yeah! Let's go!" Flandre replies.

"Alright according to our map here…The Sanzu River should be…That way!" Meiling said as she pointed off into the distance. "Off we go now!" Meiling said cheerfully, the two beginning their journey to the Sanzu River.


	8. Chapter 8: Lazy Waters

The Sanzu River was an eerie place; the area was covered in a deep fog, making it difficult for anyone to see an inch beyond their faces. Flandre and Meiling had finally reached this bizarre river after a long journey by foot.

"Man this place is foggy; I can hardly see anything beyond my nose…" Meiling said to herself as she squinted in an attempt to focus her vision.

"I dunno China…I don't think it's that bad." Flandre replies, seeming unhindered by the fog.

"So says the vampire with the amazing eye vision."

"Hmmmm…Here let me try something…" Flandre says as her face took a focused expression, her wing crystals began to flicker with a faint light, which quickly turned into a bright glow, making the immediate area clear from fog. "Is that better China?"

"Much, much better! Neat trick, how did you do that anyways Flandre?" Meiling asked in awe as she looked at Flandre's rainbow colored light display that emanated from her wings.

"I dunno…I just focus really hard and…Poof! Pretty lights!" Flandre explained vaguely with a cheerful grin.

"I see…" Meiling replied, obviously confused by Flandre's explanation. "Oh hey look! There's someone over there!" Meiling said as she pointed to a silhouette in the distance, standing by a dead looking tree and a small boat that sat on the edge of the river. "Let's go and say hello."

Meiling and Flandre approached the figure, getting close enough to see all of this stranger's details. The stranger was a young looking woman, not looking a day past her early twenties. Her hair was a shade of dark pink, which was done in a pair of ponytails tied with hair beads. She wore a blue vest over a white dress, with a large belt with a coin tied to it wrapped around her waist. In her right hand she gripped a long scythe; the blade being curved in an odd way at its end.

"Hello there! Foggy today, isn't it?" Meiling greeted, giving a friendly wave of her hand to the stranger. The stranger didn't respond to Meiling's greeting, and stood completely still and unresponsive. "Um…Hello?"

"Ung…That's my boat…Get yer own…blasted pirates…" The woman mumbled.

"What? We're not pirates!" Meiling exclaimed in response to the woman's odd response.

Flandre giggled as she started poking the pink haired stranger's face with the wand-like staff she carried with her. "I think she's sleeping. Heehee, she sleeps just like you China!"

"What? I do not sleep like that!" Meiling shouted in response.

"Mmmm…Knock it off…ya blasted anteaters…" The woman said in her sleep once more.

"Yes you do! You stand up straight like her and snore really loud and say really funny things!" Flandre replied as she giggled loudly.

"Oh whatever, let's just wake her up already." Meiling said as she nudged the sleeping stranger. "Come on, rise and shine…"

"Mmmmmm…Ungh…five more minutes mum…" The lady muttered, with Meiling starting to shake her violently awake from her rest. "Oy! I'm up, I'm up! Stop it with the shaking!" The woman yelled, with eyes wide.

"Heehee, you're funny." Flandre said with childish laughter.

"Hmmmm? Oh hey there kid, did you want me to play with you or something?" The pink haired woman asked, giving Flandre a curious look.

"You'd play with me? R-Really? Only Meiling's ever played with me…Everyone else says they're too busy…" Flandre said with a pout.

"Sure, it's not like I'm doing anything right now…Then again I guess I should probably be getting back to work before the boss chews me out and gives me a lecture on proper shinigami work ethics again…" The stranger said as she scratched her chin.

"Wait, you're a shinigami?" Meiling asked.

"Yup, Komachi Onozuka, shinigami extraordinaire at your service! Well if your dead anyways, not allowed to ferry livin folk to Higan." The woman introduced herself as, holding her hand out to the two.

"Well met, I'm Hong Meiling." Meiling introduced as she vigorously shook Komachi's hand.

"Shakin death's hand without even flinchin? Ha, I like you!" Komachi said cheerfully. "Now who're you cutie?" Komachi asked as she turned her attention to Flandre.

"I'm Flandre! Nice to meet you, I hope we can play and be friends!" Flandre introduced herself with a childish grin.

"Likewise mate, tis better to make allies than enemies. Less people dying that way and less work on me." Komachi said casually as she shook Flandre's hand.

"Heh yeah…"Meiling replied nervously to Komachi's comment. "So Miss Komachi, what do you do around here exactly?"

"Besides sleep?" Flandre added as she giggled happily.

"Oh, funny question…Well mates, well I ferry the dead to Higan to be judged by the boss man. I get spare change and some pretty neat life stories in payment. Like once I ferried this Jobs guy, he told me how he made some company named after a fruit and how they made this thing…I think he called it an eye pad. Pretty interestin, don't know why anyone would need a pad for their eyes though…Nice guy too." Komachi explained as she rubbed her chin in thought.

"W-Wait! You…You said you ferry dead people…right?" Flandre asked.

"Aye, that I did." Komachi replies.

"Well did you…Did you ferry a lady named Mokou and Keine?" Flandre asked with worry.

"Eh? Y'mean the loner and the teacher? Nah didn't see em here." Komachi answered.

Flandre gave a sigh of relief at Komachi's answer, "Then they're okay…"

"Thank goodness." Meiling added, also looking relieved.

"Dunno why you'd worry about those two, the teach's got plenty of time left amongst the living and that Mokou, she's immortal, she ain't ever gonna kick the bucket." Komachi said.

"Moky can't die?" Flandre asked in surprise.

"Eyup, been that way for…about one thousand years, give or take. She drunk something called a Hourai elixir if I remember right…Somethin about getting even with that moon princess Kaguya for dumpin her old man…Hoo, the boss sure did bitch n' moan about her and how she was a coward and whatnot for trying to escape death or something…I didn't get much of what she said, I fell asleep after the first hour or so."

"Wow…"

"Yep, hard tale to swallow eh? Don't envy that girl one bit, watchin as everyone you love dies, unable to ever join em in the afterlife, and yer only constant companion being pain n' misery." Komachi said in a casual tone.

At Komachi's explanation, Flandre felt great sympathy for her immortal friend, who would never feel the relief of death, and who would be forced to live forever with the only one ever guaranteed not to succumb to death being her most bitter enemy. "Poor Moky…" Flandre said sadly as she looked to the ground in sadness.

"Aw shucks kid…don't start with the water works…Hate it when kids cry, makes me feel guilty." Komachi said as she nervously rubbed the back of her head.

"Flandre…it's alright, Mokou seemed to be happy enough the way she is…" Meiling said, trying to cheer up her glum friend.

"I know but…The next time I see Moky…I'm gonna give her a big hug!" Flandre said with a smile. "That's what makes me feel better when I'm sad…do you think it'll make her happy?"

"I'm sure it will, Flandre." Meiling said with a cheerful giggle.

* * *

"Keine…How are you holding up?" Mokou asked her bedridden friend back at her shack of a home in the Bamboo Forest of the Lost.

Mokou's house wasn't anything too special. Its walls and roof were made of flimsy looking pieces of wood and bamboo nailed together, its floor was just dirt, and it had minimal furniture and decoration. The only furniture being a bed cushioned with straw which Keine was currently occupying, a small circular table made of old rotten looking wood with two chairs sitting next to it, and a cabinet for holding the few possessions Mokou owned sitting against the wall, standing across from her bed.

"Urgh…B-Better…Thank you Mokou…" Keine said as she breathed in and out slowly. "E-Eirin got me worse than I thought…Should have known she would have dipped her a-arrows in…p-poison." She said weakly. Keine's forehead had been wrapped in a bloodied cloth, with her left arm covered with bandages as well.

"Yeah...But you still kicked her ass." Mokou said with a sad smile, she also being heavily injured herself with her left arm in a sling and her right leg being wrapped in a bandage that was stained red with her blood. "But still…My injuries should have healed by now…The damned elixir sure does its job every other time, so why not now?" Mokou asked in frustration.

"It was probably E-Eirin's doing…She probably shot you with an arrow dipped with poison th-that slows the healing rate of whoever g-gets it…in their system…" Keine strained to say.

"Save your strength Keine…Your students still need their teacher you know."

Keine gave a pained laugh, "Wh-Who are you…my mom?"

A small smirk made its way to Mokou's grim face at her friend's response, "Aw shut up…Anyways I'm going to go find you some painkillers at the village, they won't be as good as Eirin's but…they might help make the pain more bearable, besides it'll be better than nothing. Probably get some extra food too since you'll probably be staying with me for a while…and tell the village folk that you'll be out of action for a while. You gonna be okay by yourself for a little while?"

"Mmmmm y-yeah…but would you mind picking up the children's homework assignments too? I-I still have to grade them."

"Sure, just take it easy though…Well I'm gonna hit the road now, I'll be back soon." Mokou said as she began limping her way to the door.

"M-Mokou." Keine called, causing Mokou to turn to her. "Th-Thank you…for everything."

Mokou just gave her a nod in response, and continued her way out the door, leaving Keine by her lonesome.

"Mokou…"

Mokou's trip to the village took much longer than needed, a trip that should have taken about ten minutes to and from on foot ended up being more than twice the amount of time, due to Mokou's injured leg and being unable to fly in her current condition without putting too much strain on herself. Making a normally easy trip long and straining, but she eventually reached her destination using a stick as a crutch and the great amount of pain resistance she developed in her long life.

Upon entering the village she received a few hateful glares and awkward looks from the townspeople, and a few smiles from those she had guided out of the bamboo forest after getting lost within it. Just another reason why she disliked coming to the village, so she quickly did what she needed to do while ignoring the nasty looks she was receiving from the villagers, with her only task now left to do being the purchase of medicine to better treat her and Keine's injuries, which was so far unfruitful.

"Damn…Doesn't anyone in this village sell medications besides the lunatic doctor?" Mokou asked aloud in frustration as she searched around for any sign of someone who sold medicine.

"Miss Mokou?"

"Who wants to know?" Mokou asked as she turned to her back and found herself facing Reisen, who sat behind a small stand with a sign that said " 's miracle cures" in front of it, with another smaller sign saying "open" sitting on the counter. "Oh, hey Reisen." Mokou greeted as she approached the rabbit girl.

Mokou never had any grudges against those who lived in Eientei, save Kaguya, and actually got along with many of its residents. But Reisen was the one she was most fond of.

"You don't look too good Miss Mokou…Master Eirin and Princess Kaguya must have done quite the number on you." Reisen said as she gave her a concerned look.

"Ha, if you think this is bad, you should've seen Kaguya."

"I did…she looked bad, but even her injuries have healed more than yours have…Master Eirin must have injected you with some of her new toxins in your system. They were designed to slow down the healing process of whoever's injected with it…" Reisen said with certainty.

"That's what Keine thought…Speaking of Keine; I really need some painkillers for her, and anything else that'll get her back on her feet quicker. I know I shouldn't ask since I kinda attacked your boss and all but…"

"Here, this should help with Miss Keine's recovery," Reisen said as she took out several small bottles filled with multi-colored pills. "These here are the painkillers, don't give her too much at one time, or she might overdose on them, and here is an antidote to Master Eirin's poison it's recommended to swallow it with some water."

"You sure it's okay to do this? I mean…We did kinda kick your bosses' sorry asses, won't Eirin flip her lid if you sell me medicine?"

"Well…probably…but I won't sit back and do nothing…" Reisen replied sadly. "So please, take it."

"If you insist…thanks Reisen." Mokou replied gratefully.

"No problem but…I know you and Princess Kaguya fight at every opportunity possible…but why did Miss Keine and Master Eirin get involved? Master Eirin doesn't answer me when I ask…" Reisen asked as she put Mokou's medicine in a small paper bag.

"That lunatic doctor and the moon bitch were attacking some…friends of mine, so Keine and I stepped in. Maybe you saw them; they said they were visiting Eientei."

"Oh, what did they look like?" Reisen asked, now interested.

"Well…One of them wore a lot of green and had red hair, the other was a short little girl, she wore a lot of red and had blonde hair, she also had these weird looking wings too…" Mokou described to the best of her ability.

"Meiling and Flandre?" Reisen asked in surprise.

"Ah, so you've met them?"

"Yes! They helped me with one of my chores before seeing Master Eirin…" Reisen said as she hands Mokou her medicine.

"Really? Then why would Eirin and the bitch attack those two…?" Mokou pondered aloud as she dug through her pockets for money.

"This is on the house." Reisen said to Mokou who was now desperately digging through her pockets for any spare change.

Mokou gave her a sigh of relief, "You're a life saver Reisen."

"Oh don't mention it…" Reisen said as she sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "But…I'm also confused why Master Eirin and the princess would attack those two…I'll have to ask master later…"

"You do that, but if either of those two makes another move on those two, heads will roll." Mokou replied with a grim expression. "Anyways I gotta go get back to Keine, thanks for the meds Reisen, see you again sometime."

"You're welcome, get well soon!" Reisen said as Mokou left, limping her way out of the village in a slow pace.

* * *

"So…What brings you two to the Sanzu anyhow? You two seem…too laid back to be here to challenge me for an old loved one's soul. Not that I mind visitors one bit." Komachi asked as she rested her scythe on her shoulders.

"We're just on a bit of a vacation of sorts…So we're exploring every corner of Gensokyo we can you see." Meiling explained.

"Awwwww! Wish I got a vacation…The boss always yells at me when I ask for one…She's all like "Shinigami don't take vacations, now get back to work you no good slacker!" Komachi moaned.

"Your boss sounds cranky…" says Flandre, who was now sitting by Komachi.

"Yeah…she bitches a lot…but she treats me with some respect, that's better than some can say I s'pose…Hey if you two're sightseeing and all that good stuff, how bout I take you two to Higan?"

"I thought you weren't supposed to ferry the living to Higan?" Meiling asked.

"Eh, I say lots of things…but what's the harm in just ferrying you two there and back real quick?"

"I dunno…"

"Ah come on! This ain't an everyday offer y'know! I'm only offerin cuz I like ya! Come on mate, Higan is one heck of a sight!" Komachi urged.

"Come on China, ! With lots and lots of sugar on top!" Flandre pleaded, giving Meiling a cute pout and a pair of puppy eyes.

"Mmmmm…Oh fine! I can't say no to that face…" Meiling mumbled under her breath.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you Meiling!" Flandre said as she hugged her tall companion's legs.

"Aye, that's more like it!" Komachi said with cheer. "Get on in mates, the seats are a bit rough on the rumps, but the ol' gal gets the job done." Komachi said as she pointed to the small boat sitting at the river's edge using her scythe.

Flandre immediately jumps into the boat with great excitement, causing the boat to violently shake in the water. "Come on! Come on! Let's go!" Flandre called as she childishly laughed while she sat on one of the boat's seat. Meiling took a seat next to her, placing her supplies at her feet.

"Oy, a vampire that isn't scared of running water? Now I've seen everything." Komachi said, chuckling as she boarded the vessel, taking a spot at the back of the boat. Komachi began to spin her scythe in a circular motion, when she stopped the spinning; the blade of her scythe was gone and was now just a long stick. Komachi held her stick in the water and started rowing with it, pushing away from the shore and the group floated off slowly, now being carried by the rivers current and Komachi's rowing.

"How long is this river anyways?" Meiling asked after the group had been leisurely floating through the water for a good amount of time.

"Ah, depends all on the person. Depending on how long you've lived, what crimes they've committed, and what they've done with their life." Komachi explained as she kept her lazy rowing pace. "You two're youkai, so it'll be a while…except maybe for the wee one."

"Huh?" Flandre said at her mentioning taking her sight away from the water she had been staring at for the entire trip.

"Y'know what I said bout the river's length depending on what ya did in your life and such? Well your life sure is a heck of a lot longer than any human's but…This vibe I'm getting from ya…It's like you've been sleeping for almost your entire life or something, because I can't feel any notable events in your life besides a few…" Komachi explained, all the while keeping her attention on the seemingly endless river.

"Oh…" Flandre muttered sadly as she went back to staring at her reflection in the water.

Meiling crept towards Komachi and whispered, "Her life is a bit of a sensitive subject…she's been living in seclusion for nearly her entire life because her older sister ordered her to you see…"

"Oy, say what? That sounds like one nutty family issue there…Alright let's change the subject then…" Komachi whispered back. "Ahem, hey little mate, didja know that you can find extinct sea beasties in the Sanzu here?"

"No…"

"Ah well then keep your eyes peeled mate! Ya won't see these critters every day you know! Ooh look there's one now!" Komachi exclaimed as she pointed to a fish jumping up from the water, causing Flandre to gasp in awe before it plunged back into the water. "That there was…some sort of fish!"

"So cool…" Flandre said as she watched the strange fish swim down the river, her sadness now forgotten.

Komachi gave a light chuckle, "Yeah, it sure is kid…Hmmmm…Alright, looks like we're about halfway there now mates!" Komachi announced, all the while keeping her relaxed pace of rowing.

"Great! Because this seat is killing me!" Meiling groaned in relief as she rubbed her bottom.

"Yeah…I've asked about getting new seats for the ol' girl, but noooooooooo…we have better things to worry about besides your passengers seating conditions Komachi…now get back to work!" Komachi said in a high pitched voice, trying to mimic her boss's tone.

"Man your boss sounds as bad as mine…Once I asked about getting a chair to sit on while I do my job, but nooooooooo… I slack off enough the way it is…" Meiling groans.

"Oh? Who's your boss? She sounds bitchy." Komachi asked.

"Oh the head maid at the mansion I work at, her name is Sakuya."

"Sakuya? Sakuya Izayoi! Ah dang it! That lady caused me a hell of a lotta trouble!"

"She did?"

"Hell yeah! Crazy maid threatened to commit suicide and make my job one life harder! Stinkin maid…" Komachi grumbled.

"Haha…Real sorry about that…she can pretty crazy sometimes…" Meiling said sheepishly.

"S'all good, my boss gave her one heck of a lecture, so I'll call the score settled. It was one of the few cool things she's done during my time under her…Still doesn't compensate for her bitchin though."

"These two complain about their bosses too much…" Flandre mumbles under her breath as Meiling and Komachi continued to complain about their jobs and employers to one another.

* * *

The sun began to set on another day as Reisen lugged the many medical products she was selling at the village back home to Eientei. Her thoughts were in chaos as she pondered her conversation she had back at the village with Mokou earlier that day. She began to have conflicting feelings about her masters as she trekked her way through the Bamboo Forest of the Lost.

Reisen made it to Eientei in good time, even with the supplies slowing down her pace, having a great grasp of the bamboo forest after all her years of living within it being very useful in getting through the forest quickly. Rabbits still wandered around aimlessly about the mansion grounds, with their leader Tewi lazily taking a nap on the yard, snoring loudly as she clutched a small rabbit to her side, which seemed to desperately trying to escape her grasp. Reisen ignored her sleeping tormentor and made her way inside the mansion and placed all of her unsold goods in the storeroom for future use.

Reisen found herself at the door to Eirin's room after she finished storing everything in its rightful place. Taking a deep breath, Reisen knocked on the door.

"You may come in." Eirin said from the room. Reisen did as she said and cautiously entered Eirin's room, closing the door behind her. Eirin's room was very bare, having only a bed which Eirin currently laid on, with a small bed stand with a lamp on it right next to it. Eirin was reading the latest copy of the Bunbunmaru newspaper as she rested.

"Ah, Udonge, good timing I need to have a word with you." Eirin said who had a bandage wrapped around her forehead thanks to Keine; her right arm was also bandaged.

"I-I actually need to ask you something master…" Reisen said nervously to her injured mentor.

"This is urgent Udonge, your question can come later." Eirin said dismissively. "But tell me, how did it go in the village today?"

"I-It went well…I sold a few of your medications." Reisen replied.

"Good, good…Now I must ask, have you heard of the bounty Remilia Scarlet is holding?" Eirin asked her pupil, changing the subject suddenly as she set aside the newspaper.

"B-Bounty?"

"Did I stutter? Yes Udonge, a bounty. She's holding it on two youkai named Hong Meiling and Flandre Scarlet, a close relative to her as far as we can tell." Eirin explained. "The princess and I tried capturing the two and collecting this bounty yesterday, but as you know, Fujiwara no Mokou and Keine Kamishirasawa interfered, allowing our prey to escape…" Reisen gave her master a look of shock from her revelation, with Eirin seemingly either oblivious or uncaring about her pupil's expression continued her explanation. "We are still determined to capture those two and collect the bounty to pay off our debts caused by Princess Kaguya's…recent purchases. We should be able to succeed this time, now that Mokou and Keine are out of the way now that I've injected the two with a toxin that will slow their recovery rate. Putting them in no condition to fight anytime soon, giving us an opportune time to hunt our quarry down."

"Wh-Why are you telling this all to m-me?" Reisen asked in shock.

"Because Udonge, you'll be assisting us in the hunt this time. Your abilities will be quite useful to us, and our targets won't know your affiliated with us, making tricking them all too easy for you…Now what is it that you wanted to ask?"

"N…Nothing…"

"Very well then, read this newspaper article, it has all the information you'll need on our targets. Be sure to get some rest tonight Udonge, our search begins bright and early tomorrow." Eirin said as she handed Reisen the newspaper she was previously reading.

"Y-Yes master…" Reisen replied sadly, exiting the room with newspaper now in hand.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well here we are with another chapter finished. This one took a bit of time since...well I'm lazy. Which is ironic since this chapter stars the series laziest person, Komachi. I thought I did pretty well with her dialogue, or at the least had fun writing it. As a little note, I'm not 100% sure on whether Komachi can actually ferry living people to Higan or not, but it was a necessary rule to break to set up for our dynamic duo's next destination...So that'll probably give you a clue to where the story is going next. Stay tuned!  
**


	9. Chapter 9: Heavenly Land

"And this one time I asked for some warmer clothes for the winter, but Sakuya tells me to suck it up!" Meiling exclaims to her lazy new friend, the two getting along swimmingly.

"Oy! That's what my boss said when I asked her for a new lunch after I dropped it in the river!" Komachi replies.

"Land ho!" Flandre interrupts all too eagerly, wanting to end this conversation as soon as possible.

As Flandre had said, the group was approaching a mass of land; they had reached the end of the Sanzu River and their destination, they had reached Higan.

"Oh we made it, welcome to Higan mates! Can't stay long though, my boss'll flip if she sees that I've brought living folk here, so this'll be our little secret, okay?"

Higan was as beautiful as Komachi had described, it was a seemingly endless garden of flowers, flowers as far as the eye could see. The sky, that was previously dark and gloomy around the Sanzu River, was a sheet of pure white. Meiling gasped in awe in admiration of the many flowers, feeling slightly envious that her gardening skills didn't compare to the sight she now laid her eyes upon. Flandre however began to have feelings of anxiety; her mind flooding with recollections of her nightmarish dream came back fresh in her mind.

"My goodness…this place is drop dead gorgeous!" Meiling exclaims in amazement.

"Ha, told ya Meiling! Aren't ya glad I convinced ya to go now?" Komachi asked, looking as if she was trying to suppress her own amusement as they reached Higan's shores.

"Heck yeah!" Meiling exclaimed. "What do you think Flandre? Pretty amazing isn't it?"

"U-Um yeah…amazing." Flandre replies nervously as she scanned the surrounding area warily for any sign of her sister standing amongst the flowers, ready to end her life.

The three of them hopped out of Komachi's tiny vessel; with Meiling sighing in relief as she massaged her bottom happily, overjoyed that she no longer had to sit on the stone hard seats of Komachi's boat, with Flandre and Komachi giving her awkward looks as she did.

"Komachi!" a girlish voice echoed causing Komachi to jump in surprise and turn her attention towards the sky, where a small figure could be seen soaring towards the group at high speeds.

"Oh nuts! I didn't think I'd get caught this fast! Save yourselves!" Komachi cried as her mouthed dropped open in fear as the one who was bellowing her name landed right in front of her, standing several heads shorter than her.

"Oh Komachi! I knew I'd be able to turn you around! Come here you!" The short girl said affectionately, giving Komachi a tight embrace, causing her to grimace.

"Er…Say what?" Komachi asked in confusion as she lightly pats the girl on the back, halfheartedly returning her affection.

"Oh you! Pretending not to know! You've finally ferried someone to Higan without me having to yell at you once!" The girl happily explained as she released Komachi from her hug. The young looking girl looked to be about as old as Flandre did, she had short green hair, which was longer on the right side oddly enough. She wore a dark blue tunic with a long sleeved blouse under it and a black skirt. On her head sat a crown-like hat that was black and blue with white trimming and a golden emblem on her hat with what looked like a scale etched into it. "I'm so proud of you Komachi! All of these centuries of lecturing and disciplining you have finally paid off!" The girl chirped, obviously overjoyed.

"Uh…" Komachi utters nervously as she shifted her eyes back and forth, as if looking for an escape route.

"Hello there fine spirits! I am Shikieiki Yamanaxadu!" The girl greeted cheerfully. "And I shall be judging you this evening! Come along now!" Shikieiki motioned for the two to come forward, the two did so awkwardly. The young girl looked to Meiling and took out a small hand mirror. "Hmmmm…You Hong Meiling, are a hard worker…a bit of a slacker at times, like my dear shinigami Komachi here used to be, friendly, minds her manners…good, good." Shikieiki said, as she kept her eyes focused on the small mirror she held. Meiling felt unnerved at the girl knowing her name without her ever introducing herself to her. "Ah, you are also quite the devoted friend as well, with no crimes committed and minimal cursing! You are a model person, Hong Meiling, despite your few short comings!" Shikieiki said in a congratulatory way. "Now to judge our young friend, Flandre Scarlet!" She said as she stepped before the small vampire. "Let us see here…Cheerful…obedient to your older sister..."

"Uh boss…" Komachi interrupted, her voice reeking of guilt.

"Oh Komachi, I know it's unprofessional to judge them out here rather than in a courtroom, but I'm just so excited!"

"Um…It's not that boss…" Komachi said as her eyes avoided Shikieiki's, she scratched at her head nervously.

"Then what Komachi!? You know I hate being interrupted while I'm judging souls!" Shikieiki said impatiently. Komachi crouched down to Shikieiki's height and whispered something in her ears. Shikieiki's cheerful smile that was full of bliss disappeared and was replaced with shock, and then with anger making its way to her face. "Y-You mean…These two aren't dead…Komachi?" Shikieiki asked, snarling in anger.

"Ehehehehehe…Yeah…" Komachi laughed nervously, before getting smacked upside the head by Shikieiki with a small golden rod like thing, causing her to wail in pain as she cradled her jaw with her hand.

"Komachi! What is wrong with you!? I give you one simple task, ferry the souls of the DEAD! Not living, dead! So simple a monkey could do it! In fact maybe I should hire a monkey to replace you! At least it would do the job correctly!" Shikieiki screeched at Komachi, causing her to jump in surprise from her booming voice. "Really Komachi what is wrong with you!? Just when I thought you were turning yourself around and taking your job seriously…I am severely disappointed in you!"

"Sorry boss…" Komachi said nonchalantly.

"You had better be Komachi! Now…we must deal with these two, your lecture can come later." Shikieiki said, as she approached the pair of Flandre and Meiling, who had been until now, watching the argument awkwardly, sending Komachi their prayers. "I apologize for my subordinate's foolish behavior, to make up for her idiocy I shall have her send you two to heaven, from there you should be able to make it back to the world of the living. I know this won't compensate for her actions but I hope you can still find it in your hearts to forgive her."

"It's alright…um, Miss Yama." Meiling bowed in respect, with Flandre looking at her friend curiously before mimicking her action.

Shikieiki nodded in response, "Komachi! Escort these two to heaven, the Bhavaagra area, they'll find their way back to the mortal world on their own from there, and once your finished report back here at once! You are in for the lecturing of your miserable life once you return!"

"Yes boss…" Komachi mumbled in a monotone. "Alright mates, let's get you two to heaven, come along now." She casually as she walked through the vast flower field, motioning for the two to follow with her index finger. The two just shrugged and followed the shinigami.

"She'll never learn will she…?" Shikieiki sighed to herself as she shook her head disapprovingly at her subordinate.

Komachi guided the two away from Shikieiki and into a more secluded area in Higan, if that were possible. "Alright now…it's been a while since I've taken anyone to heaven…My first time doing this with living folk too, heh heh." Komachi chuckled.

"Sorry for getting you in trouble with your boss Komachi…We're truly sorry." Meiling apologized, giving her a bow for emphasis, with Flandre mimicking her once again.

"Psh, no sweat! Not the first time I've gotten in trouble, and it definitely won't be the last, that's all there is to it." Komachi said with a shrug in her usual relaxed demeanor. "In any rate as the boss said, I'll be takin you two to Bhavaagra, that there's the closest area in heaven to Gensokyo. Once your there feel free to take a look around, heavens a pretty nice place to see too...But not as amazing as Higan."

"Alright then, so then how do we get there? Do we ride a magic carpet or what?" Meiling asked skeptically.

"Nope, just put a hand on my shoulder and we'll be there in no time mate!" Komachi exclaimed as she tapped herself on her shoulder. Flandre and Meiling looked at one another skeptically before just shrugging and placing one hand each on her shoulders. "Hang on!" Komachi shouted as the world around them flew by in a huge blur, with Higan's white sky becoming a light blue sky littered with clouds, and the grassy field of flowers they stood upon becoming hard rocky stone under their feet.

Flandre gasped at the sudden scenery change and excitedly exclaimed, "K-Komachi! Your shoulders…they're magic!" with her mouth forming a perfect circle in her amazement.

"Uh no swabby, that would've happened no matter where ya touched me." Komachi explained.

"H-How did you do that!?" Meiling asked, being just as amazed as Flandre. This incited a laugh from Komachi.

"Let's just say distance manipulation is a handy ability to have." Komachi said with a wink. "Well I'd better get back to the boss…before she gets really mad. See ya later you two, hope I see ya soon, but hopefully not too soon if you catch my drift. Later." Komachi gave the two a wave a before taking a single step, disappearing in a blur.

"Bye Koko!" Flandre yelled, waving her hands vigorously in the air.

"So this is heaven, huh?" I've heard rumors you could reach it from Youkai Mountain, but I never thought they were true…until the yama and Komachi just confirmed those rumors." Meiling said, looking around the cloudy mountaintops of heaven.

"Gyaah! W-Watch it!" Someone cried in the distance, causing the two to jump in surprise.

"Just hold still, it would hurt less if you stopped moving so much." Another voice chastised.

Flandre and Meiling's attention went to a large temple like structure, with two people sitting in front of it under an area shaded under a small roof on the temple's porch steps. The two appeared to be bickering with one another.

"Wow! That house is as big as ours!" Flandre exclaimed, holding her hands out to make a size comparison between the temple and the Scarlet Devil Mansion.

"It sure is…Let's take a closer look while we're here." Meiling said, approaching the large temple, with Flandre following.

At a closer inspection, the temple had golden trimmings, and its large doors which were wide open at the moment, being made completely of gold. Sitting by each side of its entrance were two large stones, each with a rope tied around it with small white streamers attached to them.

The two who sat before this massive building was a long blue haired girl who wore a black hat that was strangely decorated with peaches. She wore a white button up blouse with short sleeves that had golden buttons, a red ribbon around her collar, and a long blue skirt that almost went down to her feet with a white apron over it that was decorated with a rainbow colored shard link. On her feet she wore brown laced boots. She appeared to have several minor wounds all over her body and had an irritated look on her face as she glared at her companion, not seeming to notice the two approaching her friend and herself.

Her friend had short purple hair with a black hat that had a red bow tied around it, with two long ribbons coming out from where the bow was tied. She wore a white shirt that was colored red at its edges, along with a shawl that was also white and red at the ends of it. She also wore a long plain black skirt that matched the color of her hat perfectly. She was wrapping bandages around her friend's arm, which had small scrapes on it.

"Really Tenshi, when will you learn? Fighting with the flower youkai is dangerous; you could've gotten yourself seriously injured, or maybe even worse." The purple haired woman said with concern as she finished mending the girl's arm.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever Iku!" Tenshi growled as she tested out her now bandaged arm by stretching it back and forth. "Besides I did a number on her too you know!"

"Look Tenshi, I know you enjoy a good fight, but please be more careful, alright?" Iku said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Hmmmmm? Why hello there!" Iku greeted, noticing the pair that were approaching them for the first time with Tenshi just glaring daggers at the two silently.

"Oh hello! Sorry, we didn't mean to interrupt." Meiling gave the two a friendly wave, Tenshi grumbled something under her breath in response, causing Iku to elbow her in the side for whatever she had muttered.

"Oh you're not interrupting anything, we were just having a little chat, and it was nothing too important." Iku says as she gave the two a friendly smile. "So you two must be new here, I didn't realize that heaven was accepting any new tenants currently though..."

"We're not here to stay actually, we were kinda forced to Higan while we were still alive, and so the yama had us dropped off here to find our way home you see." Meiling explained as Flandre took out her small umbrella, feeling weaker now that she was closer to the sun than usual.

"My I don't recall that ever happening before…At any rate, welcome to heaven! I'm Iku Nagae, it's a pleasure." Iku shook Meiling's hand happily, then crouched down to Flandre's size and did the same with her, as she did so Flandre eyed her shawl.

"Hong Meiling, likewise." Meiling replied with her usual cheer. "Flandre, stop gawking at her and introduce yourself." Meiling chastised in a motherly tone as she gently pushed her towards Iku.

"I-I'm Flandre." Flandre said simply, still staring at Iku's shawl with a look of puzzlement and interest. Iku noticed this and looked at her shawl as well.

"Oh I see now…You want this, don't you little one?" Iku asked as she took her shawl off from her shoulders and wrapped it around Flandre's. Causing Flandre to gasp in surprise of Iku's action and look at the shawl with a childlike wonderment. She began to giggle happily as she ran around wearing the shawl. Tenshi rolled her eyes at the vampire's childish antics and started grumbling to herself again. "Be careful little one, I need that to fly!" Iku said with a warm hearted laugh. "Ah to be young…"

"Thank you for that." Meiling said gratefully as she watched Flandre run around gleefully with Iku's shawl with a smile on her face.

"Oh it was nothing; I do love to see children happy. I envy their carefree lives at times…" Iku replied, also watching Flandre as she continued running around in circles, seeming to be in her own little world.

"Hmph, stupid kid…" Tenshi mumbled under her breath as she scowled at Flandre, earning her a smack in the head from Iku.

"Stop that Tenshi! Mind your manners!" Iku said irritably, giving her a nasty look.

"Feh, why should I? Those two're only here because of that slacker mess-up of a shinigami. They aren't celestials; they didn't achieve nirvana or anything special like that." Tenshi argued.

"None of that matters Tenshi, they are our guests! We treat our guests with hospitality! The way you're acting right now is the reason some people here call you a bad celestial!" Iku yelled, causing Flandre to stop her joyful prancing and return to Meiling's side and watched the argument unfold.

"Whatever! Hospitality shouldn't be wasted on these two! They don't live here or anything! They don't deserve my hospitality, much less my respect!" Tenshi hollered back, her words earning her an angry look from Meiling.

"Tenshi I'm warning you…"

"Hey everybody! Was happenin!?" A slurred voice called, interrupting the heated argument between Tenshi and Iku.

A short ginger haired girl drunkenly stumbled towards the group. Her head had horns protruding from it, one of which was tied with a purple ribbon, and her hair tied with a large red one. She wore a white blouse that looked like it had its sleeves torn off of it, with another red ribbon tied around her collar and cuffs with chains hanging from them around her wrists. She also wore a purple skirt and a metal belt that had chains hanging from it like her cuffs, and in her hands she gripped a small purple gourd.

"Oh, greetings Miss Suika." Iku said with a friendly smile, her expression being a stark contrast to the expression she used on Tenshi mere seconds ago.

"H-Hey, hey, hey Iku! Ya wan' some sake? It's really hic-good!" Suika greeted drunkenly as she shook her gourd in Iku's face, its contents sloshing around within it.

"No thank you Miss Suika, but thank you for the offer."

"Suit yerself, more for me that way! Bottoms up!" Suika shouted as she chugged down some of the gourd's contents with obvious joy, with drips of the liquid running down her mouth and dripping to the ground. "So who're you two…?" Suika asked as she squinted at Meiling and Flandre.

"Uh, I'm Hong Meiling, and this is Flandre…it's uh…a pleasure to meet you." Meiling shook Suika's hand hesitantly, as the small girl giggled as she shook her hand in her intoxicated state. "Suuuuuuuuuika Ibuuuuuuuuuuiki, greeeeeeaaaaaat to meet ya Mei-ling!"

"Hrmph, whatever I'm leaving." Tenshi announced grumpily as she stormed off.

"Oh Tenshi, wait!" Iku called, but to no avail as the celestial kept on marching, not taking even a glance back. "Oh Tenshi…" she sighed, putting a hand to her face in frustration.

"What's her deal?" Meiling asked as she scowled at the disappearing figure of Tenshi.

"Pssssst…I…I think she's hic-on her period!" Suika whispered loudly.

"Miss Suika, please refrain from making such inappropriate comments please…" Iku sighed in exasperation.

"Oh, oh, riiiiiiight…we don't want to corrupt the little one's hic-inn-o-cent mind…gotcha!" Suika said in a hushed voice, which was still rather loud and hearable as she pointed towards Flandre with a shaky finger.

"I suppose that's one way of putting it, yes…" Iku said as she put her face in her palm.

"Alrighty no inappropriate stuff gotcha!" Suika said as she gave Iku a thumb up along with a toothy grin on her face. "So greeny, wanna be ah drinkin buddy? My regular drinkin pal is in hell and everyone else here's a bunch of lightweight stiffs!" Suika asked, her words slurred in her intoxicated state.

"Um…No thank you, I appreciate the offer though."

"Ah darn! How 'bout you short-stack? You up for a drink? Hic!" Suika offered, shaking her gourd at Flandre, causing drops of her drink to splash on the ground.

Before Flandre could respond, Meiling shouted "No!"

Suika looked at her in bewilderment "Oh well, your loss!" Suika began to dump more alcohol into her mouth, but Iku snatched her gourd from her clutches. "H-Hey! Gimme that back hic-ku!" Suika yelled as she jumped up and down, trying to recover her most prized possession from the oarfish's clutches.

"I'm sorry Miss Suika, but I believe you've had enough for now. I'll return your gourd when you've sobered up and learn to drink responsibly." Iku said, holding the gourd high above her and out of the reach of the drunken oni. "Miss Meiling, Miss Flandre, I insist that you two stay over for the night, if it doesn't disrupt any of your plans that is."

"That would be very much so appreciated!" Meiling replied happily.

"Ah, splendid! Right this way then, I'll prepare rooms for the two of you at once!" Iku said as she gestured the two to the large entrance of temple that stood before the group.

"Wh-What!? B-But I wanna come and party too! Y-You're so mean Iku! You're the worst neighbor ever!" Suika shouted as she started a tantrum, stomping her feet in to the ground with great force.

"You may join us as well Miss Suika." Iku said calmly.

"Yes! You're the best neighbor ever Iku! I love ya man!" Suika cried as she gave Iku a bear hug, ending her childish tantrum. She then proceeded to run inside the temple, with her arms out stretched childishly.

"Flandre, you coming?" Meiling asked the pint sized vampire, who had remained silent for most of the conversation and had been staring at the direction Tenshi had stormed off in.

"Huh? Oh, coming China!" Flandre responded, now no longer in her trance and ran towards Meiling to join the rest of the group in the temple.

The temple was just as grand inside as it was outside, with expensive looking decorations and huge rooms that could fit fifty people inside them and still have plenty room to spare. The sun had set on the day and the night had come. Iku was preparing dinner for her guests, with Meiling assisting her in the kitchen. With Flandre and a now sober Suika lounging in a guest room conversing with one another, with Suika telling her of her acts of grandeur.

"So you're an oni?" Flandre asked, gawking at Suika's horns. "China says oni are really tough."

"Eyup! Oni's are the roughest, toughest folk around! Never tell a lie and can handle any kind of drink, no matter how strong! Oni's have livers of steel! In fact, I was one of the famous four divas of the mountain back in the day!" Suika said with obvious pride in her species.

"Wow that sounds amazing! I wish I could play with you sometime…" Flandre said in awe. "Do all divas get to live in heaven?"

"Nah…I don't live in heaven actually, this is more of a vacation home if anything. I won it off of Tenshi after I beat the snot out of her…I think. The details are a little foggy; I was kinda drunk when I won it…"

"Yes Miss Suika, Tenshi did reward you with land here in heaven after you defeated her in combat." Iku confirmed, as she entered the room. "Dinner is ready you two, it's in the dining hall. Hurry before it gets cold now."

"Sweet, can I have my gourd back now?" Suika asked all too readily as she held out her hand.

"Here you are Miss Suika, your gourd." Iku handed her the gourd, Suika grew a beaming grin on her face at the return of her precious treasure. "Just please try to restrain yourself and drink responsibly Miss Suika."

"We'll see." Suika replied simply as she began downing sake in mouthfuls once again. "Now time to grab some grub now!" Suika shouted gleefully as she made a dash for the dining hall.

"Wait for me Suika!" Flandre called as she chased after the oni.

"My, she's quite the…character." Iku said to herself as she followed after the two at a turtle's pace.

The dining hall was just as amazing as the rest of the temple was; in the center of the room was a long table with lavish looking plates, silverware and all sorts of delicious looking foods littering the table's surface. The room's lighting was provided by a large golden chandelier and several small candles sitting at the center of the table. Already sitting at the table was Meiling, with Suika jumping into the seat to the left of her, immediately gulping down more sake. Tenshi who had returned from wherever she had gone, sat at the end of the table by two empty plates, she still kept her scowl directed at Iku's guests. Everyone in the room surmised that Iku gave Tenshi a good talking to, to convince her to let her guests to stay in her home for the night.

Flandre began to take a seat between Suika and Tenshi, but as she pulled the seat out from the table, Tenshi put a hand on the seat. "This seat is taken."

Flandre's smile faltered and turned into a small frown. "Oh, okay…Sorry." She apologized; heading towards the seat that sat next to Meiling's right. Iku frowned in disapproval of Tenshi's actions, but Tenshi simply ignored the dirty looks she received from her mentor and caretaker as she took a large bite of chicken from her plate.

The other fourat the table made small talk with one another during dinner, with Tenshi remaining silent for most of the time unless it was to make a snarky comment about the group's conversation subject. Their attempts at conversation never lasted as the conversation kept dying down until someone started a new subject, with that being the case there was more than just a few awkward silences during the night. At one point no one had said anything for over five minutes, until Tenshi broke the silence finally. Surprisingly not being an insult to one of the others at the table.

"Iku."

"Yes Tenshi?" Iku asked, raising her attention from her plate and to Tenshi.

"Where are my mother and father?" Tenshi asks, "They should be here by now…"

"Iku gave her a saddened look, "I'm sorry Tenshi. They said they couldn't make it this evening…"

"I see…" Tenshi muttered. "I'm full, thanks for dinner Iku." Tenshi said abruptly, getting up from her seat and running out of the room.

"Oh Tenshi, wait!" Iku called after her pupil, standing up from her seat, but to no avail as the celestial wasn't in the building any longer. "Oh Tenshi…" she whispered sadly.

Flandre suddenly jumped up from her seat silently and also ran out of the room, without saying a word.

"Flandre! Where are you going?" Meiling yelled to Flandre, who had dashed out of the room quickly, leaving her question unanswered.

"Maaaaaaaannnnnnnn! They must have really needed to use the bathroom!" Suika yelled, once again drunk from the consumption of too much sake during dinner.

"Miss Suika, please. This isn't an appropriate time for those kinds of comments…" Iku scolded, with her hand resting on her forehead.

"If you don't mind me asking Miss Iku, what was all that about?" Meiling asked, genuinely curious.

Iku gave a sad sigh, "Tenshi…Has a few family issues…"

* * *

**Author's Note: This took much longer than I thought it would...I mean I had finished chapter 5 faster than this, and that was over 8000 words long, this one was only half it's size...I guess it's safe to say we can blame laziness on that one. Well that and Pikmin 2. I recently bought it and have been playing the crap out of it. In fact I loved the game so much that I was listening to the soundtrack while writing this****, if your a fan of real time strategy games, I highly recommend trying Pikmin. **

**Anyways on to the actual notes here...For Shikieiki I portrayed her a bit differently than most would, I made her a bit less harsh than usual...Well except on Komachi. I'm a little sad I couldn't provide her with as much screen time as I did with Mokou and Komachi, but that's how it turned out sadly. That's all I have to say really...I'll try and work on this more and get chapters posted quicker, especially since the next chapters will be fun for me to write. Next chapter we finally get into the double digits! Booyah! Hope you all look forward to it.**


	10. Chapter 10: A pained Celestial

Heaven was unnaturally beautiful during the day, but that beauty was increased at night, with the land being lit by moonlight and the lights coming from Celestials still awake during the late hours of night. Flandre was in hot pursuit of Tenshi, using her night vision and the light that came from the moon to find her way through these unfamiliar lands. She passed by many other temples not unlike the one Tenshi called home, surmising that they were the homes of other celestials who resided in Bhavaagra. Flandre kept her ridiculously fast pace in search of the blue haired celestial.

Before long Flandre skidded to a stop to get a grasp of her surroundings, she found herself at the outskirts of Bhavaagra, with no temples or homes nearby to speak of. Flandre walked around, turning her head in all directions in hopes of finding any sign of Tenshi's location until she heard the sounds of frustrated grunting and roars of rage. She turned her head towards the sounds origin and found Tenshi, who was standing in some sort of sparring arena; she was violently striking a practice dummy with a sword that had a completely golden blade. The dummy was of a humanoid shape; it was made of straw and wood and other natural objects.

With each swing of Tenshi sword splinters of wood and straw were sent flying in all directions as her attacks on the dummy became more and more ferocious with each attack. Flandre wordlessly took a seat on a nearby log as she silently watched Tenshi mercilessly slash at the dummy, as beads of sweat slid down her face and began to pant for air.

"Stupid parents…Never paying any attention to me…See if I give a damn!" Tenshi growled as she took another violent and powerful swing at the dummy, causing the head to break off its body, the head landing right at Flandre's feet. "I…I…don't need you…I don't need you or anyone else!" Tenshi cries as she continues her relentless assault, turning the once humanoid shaped practice dummy into a mere pile of straw and wood.

Tenshi roared once more, giving what once was the practice dummy one last powerful strike, causing its remains to fly in all directions from the strength of her attack. She glared at the exact spot that the target had once stood as she breathed heavily, wiping the sweat off of her face. She turned on her feet and paused once she saw Flandre sitting right in front of her. She stared at her with a scowl until finally continuing her way to the log where Flandre was situated at and sat down next to her, continuing to breathe loudly as she glared at the ground.

After a long silence Flandre spoke up, "Um…I-If it makes you feel better, I'll pay attention to you…"

Tenshi snorts at her offer, "I don't want or need your attention kid, or anyone else's for that matter. I'm strong…I don't need anyone except Iku…No one else…Only the weak need friends, I'm not weak, and I don't need your pity!" Tenshi yells.

Flandre looks at the Celestial with fearful eyes from her outburst, she gulps before replying, "Ch-China says that wanting friends isn't a weakness, and that it's a strength! And China's never ever wrong!" Flandre says with reassurance in her voice.

Tenshi glares intensely at her, looking down at the small vampire. "Don't preach to me about what's strength and what's a weakness! You're no smarter than any other idiot I've seen in the world so far; I don't want you as a friend! I only need Iku, and that's it! I don't need my damn parents!" Flandre jumps at Tenshi's loud voice.

"Why not…?" Flandre asks nervously, not being able to think of any other response.

"Because, no matter how hard I try, No matter how many injuries I receive, no matter how many tears I shed…They'll never pay any attention to me, as if I don't exsist…Feh…Look at me, telling some kid about my problems…I can't believe what I've been reduced to."

"…If it makes you feel any better, I break my toys sometimes so I can get my big sis's attention so we can play together and have lots of fun but…she hardly ever comes though…"

Tenshi laughs at this revelation, "Well, aren't we just two peas in a pod now? You do things to get in trouble just to get some attention. Oh sure its negative attention but its attention all the same. I can relate to that, I leveled a shrine once hoping my parents would finally give me any kind of attention…It didn't really work, all I got from that was a bunch of good fights…So I guess it wasn't all for nothing." Tenshi smirks as Flandre just silently listens to what she had to say. "You know kid…I was kind of a jerk to you before. I'm sorry for the way I treated you and your red head friend. You didn't do anything to deserve it; it was…just kind of a way to vent my frustrations I guess…So…I'm sorry. There, happy?"

Flandre looks at her curiously. "Oh c'mon kid, say something. I said I was sorry so-" Tenshi's sentence was cut off by a tight hug from Flandre. She gave her a baffled look in her confusion from the hug. Once Flandre released her from the hug, Tenshi asked, "What the heck was that for?"

"Hugs make me feel better when I feel sad; I thought it'd make you feel better too." Flandre smiles happily at a perplexed Tenshi. Flandre hops up from her seat next to her and asks, "You wanna go back now?" as she offers Tenshi her hand.

Tenshi smiles back to her and took her hand and stands as well, "Yeah, sure kid, let's go. Oh and kid? Thanks."

"Oh Tenshi, you're back!" Iku exclaims in relief as both Tenshi and Flandre returned to the temple together, entering the dining room where Meiling and Suika had remained since dinner, Meiling also looking relieved at the two's return and gave Flandre a friendly smile. Iku gives her pupil relieved embrace, squeezing all the air that was in Tenshi's lungs. "Are you alright? Are you injured? Do you need anything?" Iku asks in rapid succession as she releases Tenshi from her hug.

"I'm fine Iku, I can take care of myself you know…" Tenshi answers with a hint of stubbornness.

"I know…but that won't mean I'll ever stop worrying any less about you."

"Oh knock it off Iku, you're embarrassing me…" Tenshi says as her cheeks begin to redden. "Anyways…Um, Meiling, Suika, I'm sorry for the way I've been treating you guys…Flandre here helped me realize that I was being a real brat, I've learned the error of my actions now and I hope you two can forgive me for my behavior…"

Tenshi's apology brought surprised looks from everyone in the room, but none more than Iku, who was pleasantly surprised by Tenshi's manners. "It's all good, water under the bridge and all that." Meiling answers as she approaches Flandre and puts an arm around her.

"S'all good buddy! Les drink on this heat warmin moment!" Suika slurs as she holds her gourd up, "To uh…friendship and sake!" she cheers, taking a generous gulp of the gourd's endless supply of sake.

"Well said Miss Suika! I don't believe I could put it in any better words." Iku says cheerfully.

"Uh, are you sure about that Iku?" Tenshi asks with a perplexed look. "Oh whatever, cheers."

Flandre yawns loudly, "Mmmmm, cheers…" she mumbles.

"Well, I'd say that's our cue to turn in for the night." Meiling says, picking up Flandre, who was rubbing her eyes with her knuckles.

"Yes, it is quite late…" Iku agrees.

"Awwwww! You guys are going to bed already!? You're all a bunch party poopers! C'mon, can't any of you stay up just a little bit longer for a drink?" Suika whines.

"Sorry short-stack, looks like its four to one." Tenshi says as a matter of fact.

"Oh whatever, you're all a buncha lightweights anyways! I'll just drink and have fun allllllllllllllll by myself, so there!" Suika pouts, chugging down even more alcohol, with drips of it running down her face.

The rest of them exchanged tired looks with one another before they all shrugged and left the drunken oni to her' own devices. Everyone except Suika had gone to their respective rooms, each of them falling asleep fairly fast as Suika continued to drink by herself.

The next morning everyone had woken up bright and early, with the exception of Suika, who was found passed out on the dining room table. Suika continued to sleep peacefully on the table, gripping her prized gourd like it was some sort of security blanket until Tenshi had insisted on waking her up, fed up with her using her table as a bed. She approached the oni, putting her mouth right by her ear, "WAKE UP YOU NO GOOD DRUNKARD!" Tenshi yells at the top of her lungs, causing the oni to roll off the table in surprise. She fell face first with a resounding thud.

The oni quickly stumbled to her feet, "Urgh…Why'd you go and do that!? I didn't want to be woken up so early!" Suika groans, rubbing her head in pain.

"Because Suika, I really didn't want to have an oni centerpiece for my table, especially not one who snores so loudly! By the way, ten o'clock in the morning isn't early!" Tenshi angrily answers with her hands on her hips.

"Oh yeah well…It's early to me!" Suika argues, smoothing out the wrinkles on her skirt.

"Oh please stop fighting, you two." Iku interrupts, sticking her through the door.

"Whatever, she started it." Tenshi grumbles.

"Say wha-!? I didn't start anything! I was sleeping peacefully, minding my own business and then POW! I have a blue haired witch screaming in my ear like some sort of deranged psychopath!" Suika counters.

"Well you started it by lounging on my table like it's some sort of sofa!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"Enough of your bickering you two! Stop acting like children and behave yourselves!" Iku scolds, becoming impatient.

"Yes Iku…" The two said simultaneously in a monotone.

"Splendid! Now come out and bid farewell to our guests." Iku says in a familiar cheerful demeanor. The two sigh and do as she says and followed her towards the temple's exit.

The three of them exited the temple together, where Meiling was hefting their bags onto her back along with Flandre, who was perched atop one of the keystones sitting nearby the entrance of the temple. The two looked towards the three joining them.

"So you two will be leaving us now, correct?" Iku asks the pair with a hint of disappointment.

"Uh-huh! We still gotta see the rest of Gensokyo!" Flandre answers cheerfully as she hops down from her perch.

"I wish you would reconsider and stay with us a bit longer, but if you must go, I won't argue. Just keep in mind that you two are always welcome to visit!"

"Yeah, come and visit again sometime, heaven gets real old without any visitors. Maybe we can spar a bit next time you visit." Tenshi adds.

"Oh we will Miss Iku! Thank you for having us, you two." Meiling says thankfully, as she secures her supplies. Meiling notices that Tenshi is in some sort of odd stance now, as she mumbles something quietly as she focuses her mind. "What are you doing?" Meiling asks in a perplexed state.

"She's providing the two of you with a quick ride home to Gensokyo." Iku answers for Tenshi, as she continues to focus on her activity.

Suddenly out of nowhere, two stones land side by side in front of Tenshi, landing with a loud thud. The two stones looked identical to those that sat by the temple's entrance. "Rocks?" Meiling asks skeptically, with Flandre looking at the rocks with awe.

"Not rocks, Keystones!" Tenshi corrects. "These bad boys will get you two to Gensokyo in a flash! The landing could use a bit of work though…"

"I don't know about this…"

"Oh come on China, don't be a chicken!" Flandre shouts, jumping on one of the keystones excitedly.

"Hong Meiling is no chicken!" Meiling shouts back, jumping on the other stone, though still looked nervous about using the stone as a way of transportation back to the land below them.

"Yo! Gimme one of those rocks! I'm heading back to Gensokyo too!" Suika shouts, carrying a small sack of things with her along with her gourd, which was strapped to her waist.

"It's not a rock! It's a keystone! Oh whatever, it's about time you've left anyways." Tenshi focuses once more and begins to summon another keystone.

"Yeah, well heaven gets really old and boring…Plus no one here can handle a drink here! I'm going to go visit an old friend in former hell, now those people can party!"

"Meh, have fun." Tenshi nonchalantly replies as another keystone lands nearby the ones she had summoned earlier.

"So uh…How do these things work? Do we say some magic words or something, like 'Rock away!'?" Meiling asks, interrupting Tenshi's exchange with Suika.

"No, this isn't some sort of magic carpet ride you know…" Tenshi sighs. "Look, just tell me when you're ready and I'll launch you two, got it?"

"Ready!"

"R-Ready…I guess…"

"Alright then, see ya two later." Tenshi casually says, she stomps her right foot into the ground, causing the two stones to fly over the edge. With Flandre laughing in a joyful bliss and Meiling screaming in sheer terror as the two keystones flew down to the world below. "Ah…Never gets old…Alright half-pint, you ready to- wait…what are you doing Suika?"

"Making your rock better!" Suika cheerfully replies as she holds both of her hands to the stone.

"How so?"

"By adding density! With this puppy, I'll be drinking sake with Yuugi in no time!"

"Miss Suika, I really don't think that's a good idea…" Iku says as she nervously looks at the keystone, which was becoming heavier and heavier with each passing second.

"Relax granny! I know what I'm doing!" Suika replies dismissively as she takes her palms from the keystone and jumps on. "Alright, let's do this!"

"Yeah…you sure about this half-pint? This seems really dumb…even by your standards."

"Just do it already!" Suika shouts impatiently.

"Alright then, it's your funeral. See ya." Tenshi stomps her foot in the ground as she did before, sending this keystone over the edge of the cliff, with Suika cheering happily as the stone plummeted down to Gensokyo with great velocity.

"Goodness…Do you think she'll be alright?" Iku asks with concern as she watched Suika disappear from sight.

"Eh, who knows? I'm sure she'll be fine…" Tenshi replies uncaringly, "Now let's go get something to eat, I'm starving." She says as she walks back towards the temple without even a glance back. Iku gives one last concerned glance before following after her.

"Wahooooooooooo!" Flandre shouts happily, obviously enjoying the ride unlike Meiling.

"Oh make it stop, make it stop, make it stop…Oh please make it stop!" Meiling screams as she hugs the stone for dear life.

Flandre looks up above her and notices an approaching object just above the two "Huh? Oh hi Suika!" Flandre shouts over the wind, waving to Suika as she plummets towards the two.

"Wah! Make way you two!" Suika shouts distressfully, waving both of her arms in the air wildly.

"Eh? What are you talking about Fla-GYAH!" Meiling shouts as Suika crashes right in between the two stones, causing both of its riders to be thrown off. Sending Flandre and Meiling flying in opposite directions as the two plummeted down to Gensokyo's surface.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you for reading the latest chapter in this story, I appreciate the support people have given this since it's first post. I've finally made my first milestone of ten chapters! Thank you for the support so far on this story! For this segment of the story, I wanted to give Tenshi a bit more of a fleshed out character, rather than the old "Masochist Tenshi" that are common depictions these days. I always imagined her more of a person who just likes to fight, rather than just for the thrill of the pain and such.**

**Writing the dialogue between Tenshi and Suika was probably my favorite part of writing this chapter, as it just seemed to flow freely if you get what I mean. If there's any errors in spelling or grammar, it's because I rushed my double checking for this chapter, since either I post this today, or it didn't get posted for another three days...So if you find any mistakes, don't hesitate to point them out for me so I can fix them, alright? Thank you for reading, I hope you look forward to the next chapter!  
**


	11. Chapter 11: Wandering, Never wondering

Flandre landed with a resounding thud, landing on her feet clumsily. The impact of her landing causes dirt to go flying in all directions, making a small crater where she had landed. Flandre looked around herself, taking in her surroundings. She found herself within a forest with no other people in sight.

"Meiling! Where are yooooooooooooooouuuuuuuuuu!?" Flandre called, with her only response being birds chirping happily nearby. "Me-Meiling? Are you there!?" There was no sign of the gatekeeper at all, "Meiling…Where are you…?"

Hearing no response from the missing gatekeeper, Flandre walked away from the small crater she had created to search for her friend. There was a dirt path nearby within this dense forest, in the distance she could see a tall mountain poking up from the top of the forest as she made her way along the path. She called for her friend as she traveled down the path, but unfortunately continued to hear nothing but leaves rustling in the wind. But she continued to call for her despite her lack of success, shouting as loudly as she could, but yet she heard no response still. As time passed and search not going any better than it had when she started, the small vampire began to lose hope of ever being reunited with her lost friend. The skies began to turn into a dark grey color, as if to emulate exactly how she felt. It would begin to rain at any moment now.

* * *

"Gyah!" cries Meiling as she plummets to the ground, her velocity being too great to stop herself in mid-air. Miraculously she lands on her feet gracefully. Sticking the landing perfectly.

Meiling sighed in relief, being almost unscathed from her ordeal with the keystones that was caused by Suika.

"Phew…That was a close one…I thought I was a goner for sure…" she mutters to herself as she catches her breath. "Are you alright there Flandre?" Meiling asks, but finds that her vampire friend did not land alongside her. "Flandre! Are you there!? If you can hear me, say something!" nothing but silence could be heard.

"Oh man…this is bad…where'd she go…?" Meiling asks herself nervously as she frantically looks around her surroundings for her absent traveling companion.

Meiling recognized the area she was at as the foot of Youkai Mountain, where all the Tengu and Kappas called home. There was a large waterfall visible from the area Meiling stood; the large city the Tengu resided in could also be seen. If Meiling looked closely enough, she could also make out a small Shinto shrine that was situated near the summit of the mountain. She recognized the shrine as the home to Gensokyo's new green haired miko and her two goddesses who had moved to the land of illusions from the outside world a year or so ago.

"Flandre! It's me, Meiling! You know, good ol' China! Please, if you can hear me say something, anything!" Meiling called once again, but yet again her calls proved to be unsuccessful. "Dang it…" Meiling mutters in her frustration. She looked up towards the sky and noticed that the sky was becoming a bleak grey color. It would begin to rain at any moment now.

"Hey you there, what are you doing!?" a strict sounding voice bellowed at Meiling, causing her to jump up in surprise. Meiling looked towards the mountain and found that a white haired woman was marching right to her.

"Huh?"

"No outsiders are allowed to trespass upon Youkai Mountain! Please turn back at once ma'am." The woman said with a strict tone, but her voice oddly didn't sound as hostile as her message sounded. She stood right in the middle of the mountain's path, impeding anyway to scale the mountain by foot.

This white haired stranger wore a white sleeveless shirt, with detached sleeves on her arms, not unlike Gensokyo's two resident incident-solving mikos. She had a long black skirt with a red border at the bottom that had little leaf like patterns in it. On her head she wore a red tokin hat, a hat that many Tengu choose as their head wear of choice. She also had wolf-like ears poking out from her head, along with a wolf tail come out from her the back of her skirt. Her intimidating stance was increased by the large blade and shield she held in hands.

"Whoa now…I'm not trying to trespass on your big bad mountain here…" Meiling puts her arms between herself and the fierce looking guard defensively.

The white-wolf tengu squinted her eyes at Meiling in suspicion, "Then why have you come here, and why are you yelling so loudly? It isn't safe for outsiders to be scaling Youkai Mountain."

"I uh…rode a rock here." The wolf youkai raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Okay, okay, I know that sounds a little weird, but its true!"

"I suppose I've heard odder tales..." The wolf girl slightly lowers her guard.

Meiling was curious about what story this wolf girl could have heard that could possibly be stranger than riding a rock to the mountain, but she continued despite the urge to ask her about it. "Anyways, I got separated from a friend of mine in the process…Have you seen her? She's a little girl, blonde, wearing a red dress, ring any bells?"

The white-wolf tengu scratched her chin in thought, "That description sounds…familiar…but no, I haven't seen anyone recently that matches your description. If your friend had climbed the mountain, I would know about it, your friend isn't here."

"Drats…Where could she be…?" Meiling mutters to herself with worry. "Thank you anyways Miss…Uh, sorry I don't believe I caught your name."

"Momiji, Momiji Inubashiri."

"Good to meet you Momiji, I'm Hong Meiling."

"Hmmmm, likewise Miss Meiling. I hope you're reunited with your companion soon. I would assist you in your search, but I must remain at my post and prevent any possible intruders from setting foot upon the mountain." Momiji says with a sense of duty in her demeanor.

"It's alright, I can relate to guard duty. I'm sure I'll be able to find her on my own."

Momiji nods, "I wish you luck."

"Thanks, I'll need it. Thanks for your time Momiji." Meiling departed from the mountain in search for the missing vampire girl, leaving Momiji by her lonesome.

"I swear…I've seen her before somewhere…" Momiji mutters to herself in thought. "Bah, no matter, it's probably just my imagination…" she concluded as she gazes up to the dark skies above. "Hmmmm…Looks like it's going to be a downpour…Sometimes I really hate my job…" she sighs s she continues her patrol around the mountain, dreading the inevitable rain to come.

* * *

"Meiling…Where are you…? Are you playing a prank on me? If you are i-it isn't funny!" Flandre cries to no one as she continued her search for Meiling, which was so far a fruitless effort.

The weather had worsened since she had begun her search; the sky had become even darker since she had set out on her task. It was now a much darker and intimidating shade. The once tame weather was also now very windy, blowing Flandre's hair right into her face, to the vampire's annoyance.

"Oh what am I going to do…I…I don't like being alone…I wish you were here China…" Flandre mumbles to herself sadly as she wraps her arms around herself for warmth.

Flandre stopped in her tracks in surprise as a cold droplet of water lands on her and slides down her face. She looks up toward the sky and finds that other water drops have followed after the first, it was now a light rain.

Flandre covered herself from the rain using her arms as a shield as she took shelter under a large tree to wait out the rain. As Flandre sat at the foot of the tree, hugging her legs, gazing at the rain, she wondered why she had to avoid the rain, or running water to be exact. Rain had never bothered her much before besides feeling slightly uncomfortable while being in it. Even her sister didn't seem to dislike the rain that much. Maybe it was just some sort of rule that vampires aren't supposed to cross running water? Thinking of her sister struck the vampire with grief, as thoughts and uncertainties of her sister came rushing back to her.

"I wonder how big sis is doing…is she worried about me? Mad at me for leaving? Does she miss me? Did those moon people lie about what she said…or were they really telling the truth? Does she…Does she really think I'm a monster…?" Flandre asked herself as her eyes filled with tears. She couldn't hold her tears back no matter how hard she tried, and soon began to cry to herself sadly. The loss of her companion and the thoughts of the sister she hasn't seen in so long being too overwhelming for her to bear.

At this point she felt like crawling in a hole and waiting for death that was, until someone approached her.

"Why are you crying?" a voice foreign to Flandre asked, breaking Flandre out from her grief stricken state. She looked up to the voice and found a wavy white haired girl standing in front of her, staring at her with a look of curiosity and mild concern.

She wore a small black sunhat that was tied with a yellow ribbon. She was clothed in a long sleeved yellow shirt, with the sleeves being so long that they went pass her hands. Her shirt had a green collar around the neck, and had diamond-like buttons going down the front of it; she also wore a long green skirt that went down to her knees. Though her most eye catching feature was the two thin blue cords coming out from her back, both of them led to a small blue orb that rested above her chest. Age wise, she looked to be about Flandre's age.

"Wh-What?" Flandre asked as if she hadn't heard the girl's question correctly.

The girl giggled lightly and restated her question, "I asked, why are you crying? Did you hurt yourself?"

"N-No…"

"Then why are you crying?" The girl asked again, seemingly not caring that she was being drenched by the rain, causing her clothes to cling to her body. "My big sister says that you should tell others about your problems, and my big sister is the smartest person ever! It'll make you feel fuzzy and warm inside if you do!" the girl urged with an eerie cheerfulness. Though Flandre was skeptical about this girl's sister being the "smartest person ever" as she had put it, as she had always been told that Patchouli is the wisest person in Gensokyo. Regardless of her doubts, she felt like she could trust this unusual girl, so she did as she said and confide in her.

"W-Well…I can't find China…a-and I miss my big s-sister…b-but she might th-think I'm a…monster." Flandre struggled to say through her tears.

The unusual girl took a seat next to Flandre under the tree, "A long, long time ago, my big sister told me that what people think of you doesn't define who you are, and that it's your actions that define you! …Or something like that…She used a lot of big words I didn't understand…But anyways the point is that you um…um…oh the point is that just because your big sis thinks you're a big mean monster, doesn't mean you are!" The girl smiled happily at her success of conveying her message. Though as her smile grew, Flandre could have sworn she had saw that orb resting over her chest twitch a little. Just what exactly was that orb anyways?

Despite the girl's oddities, Flandre felt at ease around this girl. Her sadness began to dissipate and turned into the last thing she expected to feel at this moment, she felt happy. Her frown was soon enough replaced by a beaming smile that was full of life.

"Your big sis sounds really, really smart…smarter than my big sis even!"

The girl grew an even larger smile on her face if that were even possible, "Uh-huh! I told you my big sister was the smartest person around!" As she spoke again the orb creaked open a little, revealing a red pupil. "I just wish I listened to big sis when she told me that…" she said sadly, as she did the eye over her chest closed slightly, just enough to cover the pupil of the eye.

"Why? And what's that thingy?" Flandre asked as she pointed to the eyeball over her chest that seemingly couldn't decide on whether to open or close as it kept fidgeting.

"Oh this thingy?" She asked, pointing directly to the eyeball that rested above her upper chest. "It's my third eye! All satori have them, that's what I am! Our third eyes let us do read people's minds and hearts and all that fun stuff! But people always looked at us funny, like we were big monsters; they always had really mean thoughts about us too...People always looked at us so meanly it really hurt my feelings." As she continued her story Flandre noticed that the girl had tears welling up in her eyes, but her voice and expression remained in their usual cheerful mood. She seemed to not notice this as she kept telling her tale.

"When I asked big sister why the world hated us, she said it was because of our third eyes, but she told me that all we needed was one another love and as long as we had that, we could survive anything! But it still hurt, it hurt really badly, it was like someone tore out my heart and ate it for breakfast! That's when I decided to fix the problem! I closed my third eye, and now no one hates me!"

Flandre looked at her in confusion, "Then why did you regret it?"

"Oh! Because I can't feel anything! When a satori closes their third eye, they close their hearts too! So when I closed my heart, I couldn't feel a thing anymore! Not happiness, not anger, not even sadness! Big sister really seemed sad when I did close my eye…But after I did close my eye, I could go anywhere and not worry about people throwing their mean words at me! So that's what I do, I go all over the world! Life was so sweet! It was like eating candy every second of the day! I visited big sister sometimes, she was always happy when I did, but she always looked at me funny... I met them at this funny shrine when I went to go ask its goddess to power up my pets with the power of love! Just like she did with my big sister's pet, Okuu!"

Flandre wasn't entirely sure of what exactly the power of love was, but she let the girl continue her story. "But the goddess wasn't home; there was only a green haired lady and a frog girl. But then I met them…the black and white witch, and the grouchy red and white miko! They played danmaku with me, they were lots of fun! I almost won, but they beat me really bad… After that I felt something I thought I couldn't feel anymore…I felt curious. I didn't understand it at all, so I asked big sister and she told me that my eye had opened a little! She was so happy about it that she cried! And big sister never ever cries! I wanna make big sister so happy, that she cries a river of joy, so I decided I'd get my eye to re-open! That way she'll be really happy!" The girl clapped her hands together as she finished her story happily.

"You met Mary and Miss grumpy meanie miko lady? They played danmaku with me too!"

"You know the magician and the grouchy armpit lady too? That explains everything!" the girl exclaimed happily, her eye seemingly twitching in response to her joy.

"Um it…it does…?"

"Of course silly! Your aura is just like the shrine maiden and witches! It makes me feel all curious and it makes me feel…something…I started feeling all warm and fuzzy on my insides when I started talking to you! I think I feel…I think I feel happy!" The girl exclaimed as her eyes almost seemed to glow with joy, along with her third eye which began to open more and more until the eye's red pupil was visible once again. But this time, rather than closing again, it appeared to stay open this time.

"I'm really glad you're happy! China says that when you make other people happy, you'll be really happy too!"

"China? But China isn't a person, it's a place silly! Places can't talk!"

"Not that China! China is my friend's nickname!" Flandre giggles as she explains to the girl. "…I hope she's alright…"

"Whatever happened to her, I'm sure she's okay!" the nameless girl said enthusiastically. "Hey! Why don't I help you find her!" she suggested suddenly.

"You'd do that?"

"Uh-huh! I bet it'll be lots of fun! Like a game of hide and seek! Plus I'm really good at tracking animals!"

"But…China isn't an animal."

"Don't people count as animals too?" Flandre's strange new friend asked quizzically, almost looking surprised that only she classified other people as animals.

"No silly! People are people! Not animals!" Flandre informed.

"Ohhhhhhhh…Alright! Let's go!" Flandre's oddball friend urged, her mind obviously set on finding the red-headed gatekeeper. Getting up from her seat at the tree's foot excitedly, she held out an arm to Flandre with a happy look on her face.

"Right!" Flandre replies, accepting the girl's hand and stood alongside her newfound companion.

"Great, now let's find China um…what's your name?" she asks.

"I'm Flandre Scarlet!" Flandre introduces herself with enthusiasm in her voice.

"Oh, nice to meet you Flanny! My name's Koishi! Koishi Komeiji! I think we'll be the bestest friends ever in the whole wide universe! And the universe is really big!"

"Flllllllaaaaaaaandre! You there!? Come on it's me, good old China!" Meiling called out again for her friend, she had called for her more times than she could be bothered to remember since departing from Youkai Mountain after her encounter with Momiji. Each call had no success in drawing out the little girl, including this one.

Meiling grew more and more worried about the vampire being on her own with each passing moment. Her worries growing since it had begun to rain. Meiling had always worried about the young vampire ever since they had met so long ago, but never has she ever been this worried about her.

As her search continued and her luck not improving in the slightest, Meiling's thoughts drifted back to the day she had first met the vampire…

* * *

**A few hundred years ago…**

"Oh blasts! How can I be lost! Not again!" Meiling cried to herself as she found herself lost once again in the Scarlet Devil Mansion, this time finding herself lost within the mansion's maze-like basement level. Ever since finding employment as the mansion's gatekeeper and part-time maid, she has never been able to find her way through the massive mansion, often times having to ask one of the fairy maids employed at the mansion for directions, which often times felt degrading considering their small amount of intelligence.

When she was asked by the mansion's mistress to bring her little sister's next meal down to her in the mansion's basement, she had no idea what to expect. She's heard several rumors from the other staff members about the mistress's little sister, many of them not at all sounding pleasant.

She had heard from one maid that the younger Scarlet sister was an insane blood-thirsty monster who only lived for the joys of killing all who crossed her path. Another maid believed that she was some of shut-in, and another said that she was an emotionless little girl who killed without hesitation. The most intimidating rumor spread about her being that she was the trigger to the apocalypse, and was sealed in the basement to prevent the world's end.

Meiling sure found it hard to find comfort with the possibility of a highly dangerous person being just a few levels below you. Especially now that she was in the dwelling of said person, alone, where no one be able to assist her…Or hear her screams.

Meiling shook away such thoughts and took a deep breath. "Alright Meiling…You just gotta find this little sister's room and get the heck outta here…nothing to it…" she mutters to herself without any sign of confidence in her voice.

She gasped in surprise at the sight of a small figure staring right at her as she crouched behind a wall. Meiling was so surprised by that she almost dropped the food for the young mistress.

"Oh h-hey there…You gave me quite the scare…D-Do you think you think you could help me find my way to the young mistress's room? I'm kinda lost…" Meiling greeted, relief washing over her now that she had found herself with some company.

The small figure remained silent, wordlessly continuing to stare at the gatekeeper with glowing red eyes in her position behind the wall.

"Is something wrong? You can come out now, don't worry I won't harm you!" Meiling crouched down to the little figure's height to help her feel at ease.

The girl hesitated before cautiously coming out from her spot behind the wall and out into the hallway.

This girl was one of the oddest sights Meiling had ever seen before. She had short blonde hair, and was tied in a side tail with a red ribbon. She wore a ragged red vest and skirt, both of which looked like they haven't been washed in years and had several tears in them; the same could be said about the mobcap resting on her head, it was honestly a miracle that it was still in one piece. These features weren't too strange by themselves, but the wing like appendages coming from her back were, if they could even be called wings. The two black rod like wings that had several different colored crystals hanging from them was one of the strangest and most unnatural looking things Meiling had ever seen, yet at the same time, one of the most beautiful.

The girl was such a bizarre sight that Meiling had to force herself not to stare at her, "Well hello there little one, what are you doing down here? You sure don't look like any maid I've seen around here before."

"I'm not a maid silly, I live down here." The girl replies, slightly looking nervous as her eyes shifted back and forth, as if looking for a possible trap.

"You…live here?" Meiling asks in disbelief.

"Uh-huh!" The girl confirms with a nod.

"I've never seen you around the mansion before though…"

"That's cuz big sis told me to stay down here…" the girl says, seemingly growing more and more restless as she begins to fidget in place.

"W-Wait…Y-y-you're mistress Remilia's…l-little sister?"

"You know big sis Remy!?" The girl asks in excitement, "How is she? Does she talk about me? Will she visit soon?" The girl asks excitedly in rapid succession.

Meiling realized just who this little girl was now, causing her face to become pale with fear. This little girl was Flandre Scarlet, the mistress's little sister. Meiling slowly backed away from the little girl in fear of what she would do to her, if the many rumors about her held any truth in them. Causing the little girl's smile to fade and turn into a small frown.

"You…You're…You're scared of me…aren't you?" Flandre asks as she slowly sits down on the hard and cold floor, covering her face with her hands as her eyes filled with tears.

"W-w-what? W-w-what would m-make you think that?"

"I can see it in your eyes…y-you think I'm scary…j-just like everyone else." She says, her voice being muffled by her hands. She was now full out crying, with tears trickling down her face and dripping onto the floor.

Meiling felt a twinge of guilt from the girl's weeping, ignoring her fears; she mustered up all of her courage and spoke. "That isn't true young mistress! Hong Meiling isn't afraid of anything!"

"R-Really?" Flandre asked, looking up to the gatekeeper with tearful eyes.

"O-Of course! I don't find you scary at all! In fact I think you're pretty cute!" Meiling reassures.

"D-Do you promise?" she asks in disbelief, holding her pinky-finger out towards the Chinese gatekeeper.

Meiling took her out stretched pinky finger and wrapped her own around Flandre's with a gentle smile. "I promise."

The little blonde girl's smile vanished and turned into a happy grin, and gave the gatekeeper a back breaking hug, causing Meiling to cringe in pain from her overwhelming strength. But she held back her cries of pain as to not upset the girl again.

Since that day, Meiling continued to visit Flandre. Bringing her meals to her each day, her fears of the Scarlet Devil Mansion's "dirty little secret" now behind her. Each day the gatekeeper would even set aside some of her time during her breaks to keep the little girl company and even played games with her. Despite her fearsome abilities, Meiling eventually felt completely at ease around the younger Scarlet sister.

To this day, Meiling still wasn't sure how the innocent little girl she knows could have received such a fearsome reputation around the mansion. In fact, most of the mansion staff today still fears her. It was a sad day for the gatekeeper when she was moved to full-time guard duty, making her time with the vampire scarce, but she still managed to set time aside each week for the girl, making living in the dark and dank basement more bearable.

* * *

Meiling was snapped out of her recollection of the past by two childish voices shouting her name in unison. "Flandre? Flandre, is that you?" Meiling shouted back, but before a reply could be uttered, Meiling was tackled by the tiny vampire. The force of the tackle, sending the two to the ground, as Flandre hugged the gatekeeper tightly.

"Meiling! Meiling! I'm so happy I found you Meiling!" Flandre cries, her voice being muffled by Meiling's chest.

"I'm glad I found you too Flandre! I was worried sick!" Meiling replies happily. Meiling then noticed the strange onlooker nearby them; an odd grey haired girl wearing a black sunhat was watching them happily with a happy smile. "Um…Hello there…who are you?" Meiling asks the girl as she got up from the ground along with Flandre.

"Hi! I'm Koishi! I'm a friend of Flanny's!" Koishi states cheerfully.

"Yeah! Koishi helped me find you!" Flandre added, looking up to her gatekeeper friend.

"Well then Miss Koishi, thank you for your help, I truly appreciate it!" Meiling thanks, giving her a humble bow.

Koishi giggles at the action, "You're really funny! Flan was right about you!"

"Uh…Thanks? Anyways, what will you be doing now Miss Koishi?" Meiling asks the small satori.

"I dunno…" Koishi puts a finger on her chin in thought as she looks to the sky, as if she'd find her answer in the sky above. "I think…I think I'll join you and Flan-Flan on your adventure thingy she told me about!" Koishi answers happily to Meiling's question.

"Really!?" Flandre asks in utter excitement.

"Uh-Huh!" Koishi nods. "I dunno why but I like you! Being with you makes me feel like I have butterflies in my stomach! I wanna feel like this all the time!" she says as she hugs herself for emphasis. "So can I? Pretty please?" Koishi pleads to Meiling on her knees.

"Oh can she China!? Pretty please!?" Flandre joins, pleading along with Koishi in unison on their knees.

Meiling soon found herself being bombarded by with pleads for the satori to join the group by both of the little girls. The pair's cute pleading voices and their large puppy-eyed expressions on their faces soon became too much for Meiling to handle. "Oh alright! I don't see why not…"

"Oh thank you China!" they cried in unison as the two both hugged Meiling at once, causing her to cringe in pain from their combined strength.

"Yeah, yeah…don't mention it…But if we're going to have another mouth to feed, we'd better go back to the human village and pick up some more food…" Meiling sighs to herself at the thought of how much of her hard earned money would go down the drain to cover the expenses. "Well, come on you two, let's get a move on…"

"Yes China!" the two said in unison once again.

"I really hope you two won't be doing that the entire time…" Meiling mumbles to herself as she headed off towards the human village with both her young vampire friend and her new satori friend in tow.

* * *

**Author's Note: Hello, thank you for reading the latest chapter of this story, I hope you enjoyed it. Sorry for the long wait for this one, I've been having a hard time with writing lately...But I am glad that I got this posted. **  
**I've actually been looking forward to writing this one, as it introduces our third protagonist to the story, Koishi. She's actually my second favorite extra boss in the series, my favorite being the main character of this story. My only main problem with her is that she was really hard for me to write for, with her being emotionless and all. So I tried giving her a more care-free and curious personality, I think it worked out pretty well.**

**I'm sorry to say, but chapters will be most likely coming in even slower than usual, as school starts for me pretty soon...It's pretty depressing to say the least. xP But I'll keep on chipping away at these chapters until this story meets it's completion!  
**

**Oh, just to say...I got lazy on my proof reading for this chapter, so if you see any mistakes, feel free to yell at me about it and I'll fix it right up.  
**


	12. Chapter 12: Reunion

In her study, Remilia was lounging about, waiting for any news on her sister to be coming through the door. She sipped a hot cup of tea as she waited, starting to become irritated with the lack of news. She soon rose up from her chair and began to pace about impatiently to pass the time until she was informed of any changes to her bounty's status.

"Come on, come on…Damn it! Hurry up!" she growled in frustration, soon giving up on her pacing and slumping back into her chair with a large displeased frown planted on her face.

"My, aren't we impatient today my little vampire?" a whimsical voice commented, obviously amused by the wealthy vampire's childish actions.

Remilia didn't seem surprised at all by the newcomer, "What do you want, you old hag?" she asked, not at all sounding amused.

"Oh nothing important…I was just in the neighborhood and thought I'd say hello to my favorite brat of a vampire." The stranger replied casually.

"Unless you have some business to attend with me, get out of my damn mansion." Remilia said with hostility in her voice. What little patience she had beginning to thin from her uninvited guest's mocking antics.

"Oh, can't I visit without a reason? And here I thought we were the best of friends, oh how your words hurt me Miss Scarlet!" the newcomer said with mock sadness.

"I'm warning you…"

"Oh by the way, how's that sister of yours? What was her name again…? Flandre was it?" she asked, completely ignoring Remilia's threat. The question made Remilia gasp in surprise, "Oh my, did I touch a sensitive subject?"

Remilia quickly recovered from her shock and retook her fearsome expression. "What do you know about her? Tell me. NOW." She demanded.

"Oh what could little old me know about your little sister? Besides, who could know about her more than you, her own flesh and blood?"

Remilia seemed to be taken aback by the comment; she scowled at her unwanted guest angrily. "Y-You shut your mouth! You have no business in my family life!"

"A sensitive subject indeed...Goodness you have enough family problems to have a soap-opera based after it! I know I'd love to watch that…"

"That's it! Get out! Get out and never come back here again!" Remilia yelled, her patience finally failing her.

"Oh what a shame…and here I was just about to tell you all about your adorable little sister…Oh well…here I go…all by my lonesome…" the stranger said, still with her mocking tone as summoned a hole out of thin air and slowly stepped in it and began to disappear.

"W-Wait! Come back!" Remilia called back with desperation.

The voice's owner instantly poked her head out from the hole, "Yeeeeeeeeeeesssssssssss, Miss Scarlet?"

Remilia groaned, "Please tell me what you know about my little sister…" she requested, swallowing her pride in the process.

"Oh very well…but only because I'm oh so fond of you though, my cute little vampire!" the stranger's voice said teasingly as she stepped out from the hole. Her teasing manner testing Remilia's patience even further as she tried her best to resist throwing several inappropriate words her way. "Anyways…Your cute little sister and your gatekeeper have been quite busy...Visiting several of Gensokyo's most notable places…and even one that isn't a part of our fair land! Along the way she's been attracting quite the attention from many residents…that satori with the closed eye and the puppeteer Alice to name a few. It's so lovely that everyone's becoming friends; it sets my heart aflutter so!"

"And?"

"And it also seems she has been getting some very negative attention as well…Namely from the lunarians at Eientei, it would seem that they have taken an interest in your bounty! In fact they attempted to capture your darling sister and gatekeeper, but were saved by the phoenix girl and the cow-faced human. Though they failed miserably, I must say when they see an opportunity, they take it by the horns! I must respect that!"

"So there have been others interested in my bounty…" Remilia mumbled to herself.

"Oh yes my dear, there has! After all, as the saying goes; money makes the world go round. And they aren't the only ones who have taken an interest; I've seen others who would gladly take a stab at collecting your bounty…"

"Really now?"

"Oh yes indeed…The greed of the living know no bounds you know."

"Hmmmm…Yes…"

"Well that's all I have to say..." the nameless entity yawns loudly, "Now that my work is done, I believe I'll take a well-deserved nap! I bid you adieu." She says as she begins to disappear once more through her hole. Remilia turns back to return to her desk, "Oh and Miss Scarlet?" the voice called once again before Remilia could take even one step towards her desk. "If your bounty continues to disrupt the balance of Gensokyo as it did in the Bamboo Forest of the lost, you and I will be having another delightful chat real soon...Well ta-ta! Do say hello to your elegant maid for me, will you?" The voice said, finally leaving for good this time.

"Hrmph…What an annoyance…" Remilia grumbled to herself as she returned to her desk, where the latest issue of the Bunbunmaru newspaper laid. Remilia sat back down behind her desk, and began to read the article. With Flandre's escapade from the mansion, she hadn't had any time to read it yet, why it hadn't occurred to her to read it rather than pacing around her study to kill time she didn't know.

Its pages had plenty of news and details about Remilia's bounty in it. But one detail about the article rattled her to her very core, she realized that the picture Aya had used for her front-page story was in full-color, causing the vampire to gasp in shock. "C-Color…? B-But the picture I gave her to use…w-wasn't it black and white? Oh damn you Aya…"

Suddenly there was knock on the door, causing Remilia to snap out from her panic and look up from the article. "Mistress, may I enter?" Sakuya asked politely from the other side of the door.

"…Yes, Sakuya, please come in." Remilia said as she shoved the article in her desk drawer to read later.

Sakuya entered the room and gave her mistress a polite bow, "Milady, I have new information for on your bounty. It would seem that the lunarians from the Imperishable Night incident have-"

"Taken an interest in the bounty, and were close to capturing Flandre but were stopped by the Immortal phoenix girl and her were-hakutaku friend." Remilia finished for her.

"…Yes, that is right milady. If I may ask, how did you come across this knowledge?"

"Let's just say a little birdy told me…But that's not important right now Sakuya, what's important right now is getting Flandre back in this mansion as quickly as possible before this situation can become any worse than it already is. I want her found and back in this household as soon as possible, do I make myself clear?" Remilia asked.

"Yes mistress, I shall see to it that mistress Flandre will be returned to your side safe and unharmed as quickly as possible."

"Good, now…would you please fetch me some more tea? I'm rather thirsty."

"Yes milady." Sakuya, bows to Remilia and exits the room silently.

* * *

"Yo Alice! You here?" Marisa called as she barged through the front door of the puppeteer's house.

Alice's house was still as neat and tidy as it had always been, with Alice's many dolls still resting on their shelves neatly, with a few others doing random housework such as dusting. How Alice managed to get her dolls to get so many of her dolls to do housework without being in the same room to control them was beyond the witch's comprehension.

"Hey you, you know where Alice is?" Marisa asked one of the various dolls, not seeming awed by the many dolls moving about on their own. The doll pointed towards a closed door silently in response. "Thanks, later." Marisa says as she left the doll to its own devices and headed toward the door it had directed her to.

Marisa opened the door slowly, causing the door to creak loudly as she opened it. Inside, she found that all the walls of the room were covered with blueprints of sorts for many kinds of dolls, each showing complex designs for various dolls. Including one that depicted a massive doll that stood at least one story high, Marisa recognized at as the plans for the Goliath Doll that Alice had created recently. Speaking of Alice, the magician was sitting at a desk with her back to the door, seeming focused on whatever she was preoccupying herself with. She didn't appear to be aware of Marisa's presence, causing the witch to grow a devious smile as she quietly approached the distracted doll maker.

As she reached her friend, Marisa leaned in towards her ear "HEY ALICE! WHATCHA DOING THERE!?" she shouted directly in her ear, causing her to jump in surprise and immediately cover her ears in pain. Inciting laughter from Marisa, obviously getting the reaction she had wanted.

Once Alice had recovered from her shock, she immediately glared at the witch angrily. "Marisa, what is your problem? Can't you see I'm busy? I can't get any work done with you barging in my house whenever you feel like it, and screaming in my ear like some sort of child." Alice huffed, going back to focusing on her work as soon as she was done speaking.

"Well, I'm told I have a lot of problems, ze." Marisa replied as she looked around the room curiously. Assessing what would be of value to her as she waited for a reply.

Alice turned back in her seat from her work again with an irritated look, "Obviously. Now unless have something of importance to tell me, please leave." Alice turned back to her work and quickly added, "I'm busy."

"Busy? Playing with your dolls isn't what most people would consider busy." Marisa said mockingly, as she looked over Alice's shoulder and observed her work.

"Well then, I'm not most people now, am I?" Alice replied nonchalantly, not even bothering to look to the witch as she carefully attached a limb on her project carefully.

"Guess not, ze. What're you even working on anyways?" Marisa asked as she tried to get a better view of her work unsuccessfully.

"My finishing peace for the Scarlet Devil Mansion collection…" Alice answered absent mindedly, as she dug through her desk drawer for something.

As Alice dug through her drawers, Marisa took it as an opportunity to get a good look at her work. Sitting on the table surface was a doll, it had blonde hair and wore a red dress, it seemed incomplete but Marisa immediately figured out who it was supposed to be.

"Making a Flan doll, eh?"

"A Flandre doll, yes. I've been working on it since I met her; it makes me paranoid when I don't have a complete set of dolls." Alice replies as she slammed her drawer shut in frustration. "Well it'd seem I don't have the right materials for the wings…Well, since I can't finish this at the moment, you have my attention now."

"Goody. Now since you can't finish that doll thing of yours, wanna go to the human-village and go shopping or something?" Marisa asks.

"Shopping, huh? Most people use money when they go shopping Marisa…Normally I'd decline…but since I need some new materials for this doll, I suppose I may as well join you and pick some up at the village."

"You'd normally decline? Who'd decline on having me around for company? After all, I'm the best person in Gensokyo to be around, ze!" Marisa gives her a goofy looking grin and thumbs up.

Alice sighs, "Whatever helps you sleep at night Marisa…"

"Ah whatever, you know ya love me!" Marisa cheers as she playfully nudges her friend in the arm as they exit the room together.

* * *

"Oh wow, oh wow! What an amazing place!" Koishi exclaims as the group of three reached their destination. The weather had fortunately cleared up, with the sky now being a bright orange color rather than a bleak and dark grey.

The village was as lively as it had been the first time Flandre and Meiling had visited. There was still plenty of people out and about, trying to catch others attentions by crying out special deals to those passing by.

"What, you've never been to the village before?" Meiling asks Koishi as the group entered under the village's large gates.

"No, I have silly! It's just so…so…magical!" Koishi explains as she looks around the village in awe.

"I know right!? China said that I'd get used to it, but it's so amazing!" Flandre agreed, as she too looks around with awe filled eyes.

"Hmmmm, I guess it is kind of magical." Meiling half-heartedly agrees. "Its charm just wears off after you've seen it so many times…"

"Charm doesn't wear off silly! It's something that can never be washed away!" Koishi disagrees, albeit not bothered at all by Meiling's opinion.

"Whatever you say, I guess the charm stays with some and for others it doesn't."

"Well I think it'll always be super amazing and magical!"

"Me too!" Flandre agrees with her new friend.

Before the group's debate could be continued, it was interrupted by someone's yelling. "Whoa, watch it Keine!" a familiar voice cried with concern.

"Huh?" Flandre turned to the voice, and found her suspender-wearing friend Mokou, along with Keine, the former helping her into the village.

"Oh don't be such a worry-wart Mokou I told you, I can walk on my own just fine…" Keine replied, looking slightly agitated by her friend's concern.

"Yeah, yeah, well it's only been a day since I gave you that medicine; I have a hard time believing you're all better now after one day." Mokou countered.

"Mokou, you do realize that the medicine you gave me was concocted by Eirin, The doctor that's said to even be able to cure death?"

"Yeah…"

"And you do realize that I'm a were-hakutaku, yes? Making my recovery rate much quicker than a normal human's?"

"Umm…Good argument…" Mokou says in defeat, letting her friend walk on her own.

"Thank you, Mokou; your concern is touching though." Keine says gratefully.

"Whatever." Mokou replies simply as she diverts her gaze from Keine and shoves her hands in her pockets.

"Moky!"

"Eh?" Mokou says as she looks towards the voice's caller, but her eyes go wide as Flandre tackles her with a powerful hug, causing the immortal to go blue in the face. "G-Gah, n-nice to see y-you too k-kid…N-now l-let me g-go…" Mokou pleads as her face becomes bluer and bluer from Flandre's suffocating hug.

Flandre releases her hug, allowing Mokou to breathe again, she pants for air to enter her lungs like she had just run five miles straight without taking a break. "You're okay Moky! I'm super dooper happy!" Flandre exclaims as the phoenix girl kept panting for air.

"Was there…ever…any doubt…I'd be alright? Phew…" Mokou says between breaths of fresh air, "Oh man…Thought I was goner for a second there…Or I would be if it weren't for me being immortal…Anyways, nice to see you kid. But what was up with the hug there?"

"Oh no reason…" Flandre giggles, causing Mokou to raise a brow at her. "Oh hi Miss Funny hat!" she quickly greets Keine, who looked like she was trying to suppress laughter from the look on her face.

"Hello Miss Scarlet, it's nice to see you again, and unharmed no less." Keine replies. "Ah, and hello to you as well, Meiling!" Keine says with a friendly wave as Meiling and Koishi approach the group.

"Ah hello Keine! A pleasure to see you again! I'm relieved you weren't too seriously injured from that scuffle in the bamboo forest a few days earlier!" Meiling replies, waving back to the teacher.

"And who's this here?" Keine asks as she crouches down to Koishi in a friendly manner.

"I'm Koishi, I'm Flanny's friend! And I really like your hat!" Koishi says cheerfully.

"I see…Um, thank you. I've been told that by quite a few of my students…"

"I can see why! It's really extraordinary! But not as extraordinary as mine…My hat's the most amazing thing in Gensokyo!"

"Marisa I swear, if you keep stealing from every store we go to, I'm going home." An irritated voice said.

"It's not stealing, it's borrowing! Besides that last guy was a real crook anyways! That was way too much money for a damn hat!" Marisa argued.

"I don't care! As long as I'm with you, I'm considered an accomplice! I am not going to jail because of your stupidity!" Alice yelled back.

"Jail? Does Gensokyo even have a jail, much less any sort of law-enforcement, ze? Hell, the closest thing we have to a police officer around here is that weirdo girl, and she doesn't even count." Marisa turns away from Alice and noticed the small group nearby. "Yo Flan! What's goin on?" Marisa greets, waving to the group as she trots towards them, Alice following her.

"Mary! Alice! What're you two doing here?" Flandre asked as the two joined them.

Before she could respond, Marisa was shouted over by Koishi, who looked almost overjoyed. "It's the black and white witch! I can't believe it's you!"

"Oh hey there…Koishi right? You were that Satori me and Reimu dealt with after that whole former hell incident, yeah?" Marisa asked.

"You remember me!? I'm honored!" Koishi exclaims as she looks at the witch joyfully.

"Er right…" Marisa replies as she rubs the back of her head nervously. "So what's up with you three eyes? You lost or somethin?" Marisa asks curiously.

"Nope, I'm with Flanny and China. We're all gonna go exploring together!"

"Uh-huh…Well sounds like you're gonna have your hands full with these two china-girl." Marisa smirks at the gatekeeper.

"Yeah, tell me about it…" Meiling mumbles in reply.

"To answer your question from earlier Flandre, I'm here to find some new doll materials, and Marisa is robbing each store she passes by." Alice speaks up, glaring at her witch companion with venomous eyes.

"Hey! That is not true! I only borrow from the stores with good looking stuff!" Marisa argues.

Before their argument could progress any further, they were cut off by Keine. "Ahem, so I presume you two are acquainted with Flandre and Meiling?" Keine asks, looking towards the arguing pair of magicians.

"Yeah, that's right. I've known Flan here for a few years now, and Alice met her a few days ago." Marisa answers for the two of them, "Oh hey there…Mokou right?" Marisa asks, noticing the suspender-wearing immortal for the first time.

Mokou nods in response, "Glad you remembered me; I'd be a little insulted if you forgot my name after you and doll girl here tried killing me." She replies nonchalantly.

"Hahaha…Yeah, sorry about that..." Marisa rubs her head sheepishly, "No harm though, you being immortal and all, right ze?"

"Guess so, water under the bridge as they say." Mokou responds with a cool head.

"Anyways Flan, how's that whole Gensokyo world tour thing working out for ya?" Marisa asks, hastily changing the subject.

"Really, really great! Me and China went to lotsa places already! Like that bamboo forest and the Sanzu river…and even heaven!" Flandre exclaims.

"Yikes, sounds like you've been havin a hell of a time there kid. Thought the whole bounty on your head thing would dampen the mood." Marisa comments.

"Y-You know about that?" Meiling asks in surprise.

"Yeah…Remilia put a big-ass bounty on the two of you right? It's all over Gensokyo now thanks to Aya's newspaper you know."

"Hmph, that explains why Kaguya went after you two then. That greedy bitch…" Mokou grumbles.

"A bounty? Big sister told me about those! She said that people pay lots and lots of money to anyone who can get their target!" Koishi says at the mention of the bounty, "So you got one of those bounty thingies on you now?"

"Mhmm, big sis must really want me to stay in the mansion…" Flandre answers.

"Placing a bounty on her own flesh and blood seems a bit extreme personally…someone should really give her a good talking to…" Alice comments.

"Agreed, it is an extreme course of action, but a very effective one at that. Keine adds.

"So what are you three going to do now then?" Alice asks, "You must have some idea of what you're going to do next, yes? And if not, you should. Especially with a bounty on your heads, it won't be long before someone takes on Remilia's offer. It'd be best to plan ahead."

"No clue yet, we're just here to get some more food now that we have Koishi here traveling around with us…" Meiling replies, "You're right though, walking around without plan could be disastrous to say the least."

"One thing for sure is, is that Kaguya won't have given up on that bounty yet. She'll dog you until she gets it, no doubt about it." Mokou says with certainty.

"Eh? How'd you know? She seems pretty lazy to me." Marisa asks, skeptical of Mokou's claim.

"Because I know Kaguya, when she wants something, she won't stop until she gets it." Mokou answers, "If she really wants something, she drags her lackeys around with her. But I wouldn't doubt that Eirin's helping her out of common interest." She quickly adds.

"Hmmmm, you seem to know Kaguya rather well…I suppose you get to know a person more after knowing them for over a thousand years." Alice comments.

Mokou shrugs at the comment, "Best way to destroy your enemies is to know your enemies."

"Anyways…To avoid Kaguya and Eirin, I'd recommend finding shelter in Myouren temple and wait them out bit." Keine suggests, "If I'm correct, you did say Kaguya loses interest rather quickly, right Mokou?"

Mokou nods in confirmation, "Yeah, the airhead practically goes from one thing to the next in less than a minute if it gets too hard for her to manage. Won't be long before she gets impatient, throws a tantrum, and goes crying home."

"Myouren temple? Isn't that the temple that was landed here about a year ago that's run by that Byakuren lady?" Meiling asks.

"That'd be correct Meiling; she's a fairly nice individual. She helps youkai and humans alike with their problems whenever she can. This would include shelter." Alice answers, seemingly being well informed on the temple.

"Uh-huh, it's true! Miss Byakuren let me stay in her temple once! It was really cozy…" Koishi agrees, smiling fondly at her memories of her last stay at the temple. "I'll bet you'll love it there Flan! Miss Byakuren is the nicest old lady I've ever met! She talks in a really sweet voice like my big sis does, and she smells really good, and she helps you with your problems…"

"Alright three eyes, I think she got the point there." Marisa interrupts, cutting Koishi off from her ramblings. "But yeah Flan, Byakuren's a pretty swell lady. Probably the best person to be around in Gensokyo if you're a youkai, ze."

"Wow…She sounds as amazing as Remy!" Flandre chirps excitedly, looking excited to meet someone who was fondly spoken of.

"Eh, fangs isn't my first thought when I think of amazing, but hey, whatever floats your boat." Marisa replies as she looks to the sun. "Well, sorry to cut this sappy reunion scene short and all, but I'd better get home before it gets too dark. Not a good idea to be wondering around at night in Gensokyo."

"I'd have to agree with Marisa for once, I'd better go home before dark as well. It was a pleasure to see you again Flandre, Meiling, and you too Koishi. It was also nice to see you again as well, Keine and Mokou." Alice said giving the group a polite wave farewell as the two began to take their leave.

"Bye Mary! Bye Alice! I'll have lots of stories to tell you two after our adventure!" Flandre waved back cheerfully to the puppeteer and witch as the two flew off.

"Farewell black and white witch! And you too doll-otaku!" Koishi cried, joining in her farewell.

Everyone else just simply gave a polite wave back to the two as they left, their goodbyes not being as energetic as Flandre and Koishi's were.

"I'm sure ya will kid! Just be careful, ze!" Marisa called back before zipping off out of sight on her broom into the horizon.

"Sometimes I wonder about that Marisa girl…Sometimes it just feels like that head of hers just isn't screwed on right…" Mokou says once Marisa was long gone.

"I'd have to agree with you on that…" said Meiling with a sigh.

"Anyways, before you three head out for Myouren temple, how about some dinner? It'll be my treat." Keine offers.

"That'd be great! I haven't eaten all day…But are you sure? I'd feel bad making you pay for everything…" Meiling asks with a hint of concern.

"Of course! I insist. Besides, being the village's only teacher has its perks you know, including discounts." Keine says with a wink.

"Well if you say so! Thank you very much Miss Keine!" Meiling says gratefully, looking relieved that tonight's dinner arrangements wouldn't make a dent in her wallet.

"Oh it's not a problem! Follow me, there's an amazing food stand nearby, their lamprey is to die for." Keine said as she led the four of them along through the village.

* * *

"That Flandre sure is an interesting one, wouldn't you say?" Alice asked Marisa as the two made their way to the forest of magic. With the two flying above a seemingly endless sea of trees.

"Huh? Yeah, great kid…" Marisa replied absent mindedly as she stared off into space.

"Hard to believe she was in the mansion's basement for so long too, just one floor below me all those times I visited the mansion's library…"

"Yep…" Marisa responded, her face showing guilt.

"How anyone could lock up their own little sister like that is beyond me…It's just unbelievable anyway I think about it." Alice continued.

"…I didn't always think like that, ze."

"Hmmmm? What do you mean?" Alice asks, looking confused.

"I mean, I didn't always think it was unbelievable that Remilia locked her up." Marisa replied, not even bothering to look at Alice as she spoke.

"Why wouldn't you think that?" Alice asked, seeming slightly irritated with her friend's response. "She's a nice girl who didn't seem to do anything to deserve what happened to her, why wouldn't you think it's unbelievable?"

"I don't wanna talk about it." Marisa replies dismissively.

"Why not?"

"I said I don't wanna talk about it…" Marisa said once again.

"Don't be so stubborn Marisa, just tell me. What's the big deal?" Alice persisted, not letting the subject go.

"Because I was afraid of her alright!?" Marisa shouted at her. Alice was shocked at Marisa sudden outburst as she silently stared at the witch with surprise. "A little while after me and Reimu took care of that scarlet mist incident, Flandre ended up getting out of the basement somehow and that basically put the mansion in chaos. Me and Reimu went there to handle her after Remilia asked us to take care of it for her and get her back in to the basement." Marisa continued, looking outright guilty, as if she had committed some sort of unforgivable crime.

"At first I thought it'd be an easy job, maybe get the chance to get a few more books from Patchy afterwards. But I was wrong; Flan was one of the toughest youkai I've ever had to go against, hell I'd even say that was the hardest fight I was ever in. Heck, the girl practically beat us. After we beat her by the skin of our teeth, we managed to convince her to go back in to the basement, but after that experience…Well I didn't go back to the mansion for weeks. I was afraid of her, I mean…the way she called danmaku 'playing' just freaked me out, I thought she was some sort of loon that got her kicks out of killing or somethin and that's why fangs locked her up. Even after I started going back there I was still afraid that Flan would bust out and blow me to smithereens or something…" Marisa continued, with a face full of regret and guilt.

Alice remained silent as she took in Marisa's story, "Then what changed?" she finally asked. "I mean, you obviously aren't afraid of her anymore, and you even told me that you visited her in the basement before."

Marisa sighed to herself, "Well…it was a good few months since me and Reimu beat her in danmaku, and I was borrowing some more stuff from Patchy again. After Patchy took it in her usual good humor and tried blowing me up again and failed, I ended up going into the basement by accident. Just when I was trying to sneak out without Flan noticing me, I started hearing the kid sobbing. Despite nagging myself to get the hell outta there and get as far away from her as possible, me being a pretty big sap for kids, I ended up going into her room and asking her what was wrong instead. She was cryin cuz she missed her sister and she hasn't visited her in a few years or something…And even though I was basically terrified of this kid, I felt bad for her…I mean, it must be rough living in that basement all alone and all…So that's basically how my opinion on her changed, I didn't see some bat-shit insane monster anymore, I just saw a little kid who missed her sister."

Alice looked at Marisa with awe, overwhelmed by her tale. "Wow…Marisa feeling bad for someone? Who are you and what did you do with my annoying neighbor?" Alice asked mockingly.

"Oh shut it doll girl." Marisa playfully nudged the puppeteer in her side, "But could you keep this on the down low? It's gonna be awful hard to knock trouble making youkai around if they're laughing at me for being soft on a kid."

"Oh of course Miss macho youkai exterminator, I'd just hate to see your reputation go to the gutters just because you're nice to someone for a change." Alice says sarcastically.

"Glad we understand one another here." Marisa replies nonchalantly as the two finally make it to their destination. The two began to descend down to the forest and make the rest of the trip by foot.

* * *

"Ah…That hit the spot…Thanks for the meal Miss Lorelei! You're an excellent cook!" Meiling complemented as she cleaned her plate enough to see her own reflection.

"Yeah no problem, glad you enjoyed your meal and all that jazz." The stand owner Mystia replied uncaringly as she kept cleaning dishes behind her stall counter.

'Mystia's Night-blindness curing Lamprey' was one of the few, if not the only stand in the village that was run by a youkai. Most youkai kept away from the village as many humans who dwelled within had grudges against youkai for one reason or another. Such as a youkai being the murderer of a close relative or friend, or a youkai had stolen their life savings, there were many reasons that villagers disliked or didn't trust youkai. Some villagers even had issues trusting Keine with her being half-youkai. Yet here was Mystia, running her business without a worry in the world. Whether she was brave or just foolish, no one could say.

"Thank you again Miss Lorelei, your lamprey was as delicious as always." Keine commended gratefully.

"No problem Miss Keine, always great to have customers. It's rare that I get customers at my stand without having to resort to my…marketing skills." Mystia said suspiciously.

"I really wish you wouldn't resort to giving villagers a case of night-blindness just to bring in customers Miss Lorelei…" Keine chastised.

"Oh come on Keine, a youkai's gotta make a living somehow. Besides making sales has been hard lately, villagers here have been getting more and more riled up about youkai more than ever, it's really hurting business me being a youkai and all…" Mystia said sadly.

"Sorry to hear that Lorelei, humans really gotta accept the past and deal with it." Mokou said sympathetically.

"Ha, thanks Mokou, coming from a competitor in the food business that means a lot." Mystia giggles, "Though condolences ain't gonna make things change…Especially with that human saint coming back now…" Mystia's expression shifts to a small frown, obviously not overjoyed by this saint's return.

"You mean saint Toyosatomimi, that Taoist that was resurrected a few months ago?" Meiling asks.

Mystia nods to answer her, "That's her; she's been doing a lot of rallying at the village lately and getting the humans all huffed up. All I know is that she definitely isn't going to be a friend to us youkai, that's for sure…" Mystia says with contempt, "Might have to take business elsewhere for a while until things here calm down…"

"Wait, that Toyosatomimi guy is a lady?" Flandre interrupts, looking confused.

"Yeah, that's right." Meiling replies.

"But you said she was a prince China! Girls can't aren't princes, they're princesses!" Flandre cries.

Meiling looks totally stumped by Flandre's comment "Uh that's true…Um could you clear this up Miss Keine?" Meiling asks the teacher.

Keine just shrugs and replies, "Even I'm stumped on that one, I have no idea why she's referred to as a prince when she's clearly female, and I've never met her to read her history before. Hmmmmm...I'd love to talk to her sometime about the era she was born in, I'm sure she'd be quite the individual to chat with…Though that's unlikely seeing how I'm half-youkai, and seeing as her stance against them is clear, I don't think it'd be wise for me to seek her out…"

Mystia lets out a frustrated grunt, "Hmph, I can't believe you'd even consider speaking with her Keine! She's threatening to ruin everything for us youkai, and all you can think of is sitting down with her over a cup of tea!?"

"I know I know…I can't help myself at times…Though I suppose as the saying goes, "Curiosity killed the cat."

"Or the were-hakutaku in this case." Mokou adds, taking a generous gulp of sake from her glass. She downs it in one round and slams the glass on the counter, wiping her lips off with her sleeves. "If this saint keeps it up, the tension between humans and youkai are going to escalate and cause bloodshed worse than anything either species has ever done to the other. Mark my words."

"Huh…Why does everyone fight with one another?" Koishi asks to no one in specific, "Big sister says that fighting is pointless…So why does everyone fight?"

Everyone remains silent at the question, no one seemingly being able to produce an answer besides Mokou. "People fight for a lot of reasons kid, from enjoyment to hate, to just plain fear. My guess why humans and youkai fight is for survival, they fear that if they don't get rid of any possible threats to their existence, that they'll be the ones biting the dust." Mokou replies nonchalantly. Unfazed by the fact that everyone at the stand was directing their attention to her.

"Wow! You sound really smart!" Koishi exclaims, her mouth making a perfect circle. "The only person who's ever said anything smarter is big sister!"

Mokou shrugs off her compliment, "Yeah, thanks kid. You learn how things work in the world once you've been around as long as I have…"

"Well it's getting late; the three of us should probably be heading out to Myouren temple before it gets too dark out. Thank you for the lovely evening." Meiling says, bowing to the pair respectfully.

"Thanks Miss Funny hat!" Flandre and Koishi both chirp simultaneously. Causing Meiling to once again ponder how the two of them keep speaking simultaneously.

"Not a problem, always great to have a night out with friends." Keine replies cheerfully. "I'll see you at your next tutoring session, Miss Lorelei."

"Right, I'll be there. Thanks again for the private tutoring and all teach, it's hard to find anyone willing to teach a youkai, and it sure is difficult to run a business without knowing how to read…" Mystia replies sheepishly as she begins to shut her food stand down for the night.

"Myouren temple is just at the edge of town, it's the largest building around so it'll be hard to miss. I wish you luck with your journey you three." Keine says as she points them to the temple's direction.

"Thank you again Miss Keine, you've been a great help to us. I can't express how grateful I am to you and Mokou." Meiling says with evident gratitude.

"It's no bother, right Mokou?" Keine asks as she looks to her suspender wearing friend.

Mokou nods, "Yeah, it's no problem besides…I'm kinda growing fond of you guys." She says as her face forms a small smile.

Flandre walks up to Mokou and gives her a hug, though not being as strong as the one she had given her earlier, much to the relief of Mokou. "I'm glad we got to see you again Moky…I really hope we see one another again someday…"

Mokou sighs to herself, "I'm glad I got to see you again too kid. I'm sure we'll see one another again sometime, I have a good feeling about it." Mokou shows a rare side of herself as she pet the girl on the back of the head in a motherly way.

"Oh I'll miss you too Moky!" Koishi cries as she joins in on the hug, causing Mokou's arms to be firmly held down to her body by the two girls. Inciting stifled laughter from both Meiling and Keine, earning the two of them a glare from the immortal.

"Alright you two, let's get going. We have to get to the temple before everyone there falls asleep…It'd be rude of us to interrupt their rest afterall." Meiling says. The vampire and satori groan together, but do as she says and release Mokou from their grip.

"Farewell! I pray that your journey goes unhindered!" Keine shouts to the three as they depart, waving their arms to the pair. "I know I shouldn't worry but…I can't help but feel those three will run into a lot of trouble in their travels…" Keine says with concern once the group was out of earshot.

"Feh, you worry too much Keine…They'll be fine." Mokou says reassuringly, "Besides…Those three are no push-overs, I'm more worried about the idiots that'll try collecting that bounty honestly…"

"I suppose your right…"

"Of course I am, now let's get going. We still need to get you settled back into the village you know." Mokou says, shoving her hands in her pocket and heading off towards Keine's abode. Keine sighs and followed after her impatient friend.

* * *

**A/N: Well, another chapter completed. Thanks for reading the latest chapter of this ongoing story here. I'm sorry about the wait, I've been pretty busy lately...With school, and other business. Plus I ended up becoming enamored with Dolphin Rider Koishi...Which is by the way, an excellent fanfic. If you haven't read it yet, do it now. It's honestly one of the best stories I've read on this site.**

**Anyways, enough fanboyism over a fanfic...for now. This chapter was a fun one to write, especially the first portion. As who the mystery figure is with Remilia...well I honestly don't think it'd be too hard to figure out to be honest. xP As for the chapter as a whole, this is more of a filler for the story, no events worth noting, just a way to set up where our trio of adventurers are heading off to next. I also managed to foreshadow a few things in this chapter, which is always fun to do.  
**

**Well, hope you've enjoyed this chapter.(And the other ones too of course!) And I hope I can keep you interested in this story...Well, until the next chapter then!  
**


	13. Chapter 13: Welcome to the Youkai Temple

Myouren temple was a fairly large building and as Keine has said, hard to miss, especially with the large sign with the words 'Myouren Temple' marking the entrance.

The temple had a large gate surrounding the building, but had no doors to impede anyone, allowing anyone to come and go as they pleased. The temple looked to be about the size of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, if not bigger. The temple also appeared to be taken well care of, without any sign of decay or ruin to be found on the temple grounds.

"Hmmmm, so this is Myouren temple, huh? It's quite the sight…I'm actually surprised that a temple consisting mostly of youkai would be so close to a village full of humans…Though considering this is Gensokyo, I guess I've seen odder things." Meiling said as she took in the sight of the gargantuan temple. "So you said you've stayed here once before Koishi?"

The satori nodded energetically in response with a goofy looking grin on her face "Yep! Miss Byakuren let me stay here for days! She's a really nice lady! I hope she remembers me!" Koishi said hopefully as she looked to the temple longingly.

"Oh I'm sure she will, Koishi..." Meiling thought to herself as she looked at the satori with a curious expression. _After meeting you, I sure don't think I would…_Meiling thought to herself as she scanned the temple for any sign of activity.

"Hey it looks like these temple people are still awake!" Flandre announced, pointing to the light coming from a few of the temple's windows for clarity.

"Ooh! I hope Miss Byakuren is still up! Her bedtime stories are the best!" Koishi exclaimed as she cheerfully skipped to the temple entrance in excitement.

"Wait for me Koishi!" Flandre called to her friend as she followed after the satori.

Meiling sighed to herself in exasperation, "Sometimes I have to envy their enthusiasm…" Meiling mumbled to herself as she followed after the two at her own pace.

Despite their evident excitement, both Flandre and Koishi waited at the temple doors for Meiling with as much patience as they could muster, though the two of them looked downright eager to enter the building. Especially Koishi, who almost seemed to tremble with excitement.

Meiling couldn't help but smile at their childish behavior as she politely knocked on the temple doors. The group received an immediate reply to their knocking, "Coming! Coming! Just a second!" a rather childish voice echoed from within the temple. Which was odd, the building didn't look large enough to carry an echo. Perhaps it was larger on the inside like the Scarlet Devil Mansion?

The large temple doors slowly creaked open, with the group backing away from them to avoid getting smacked by them. At the door way was a cheerful looking girl. She wore a pink, long sleeved shirt and a white skirt with a black border on it. Her hair was short, only reaching to her shoulders, and was aqua green. She also had a pair of dog-like ears coming out of her head, which wasn't unusual for youkai. In her hands she held a broom; she seemed pleased by the prospect of visitors, as she had a large beaming smile on her face.

"Hello! Welcome to Myouren temple!" the girl greeted, bowing to the three energetically. "Are you three in need of shelter for the night?" The girl asked with concern, "Sister Byakuren told me to accept all visitors with open arms, so don't be shy!"

"Why yes actually, we'd very much so appreciate it if we could rest here for the night." Meiling replied for the three of them.

Meiling's answer seemingly overjoyed the girl, as her smile became larger, if it were possible. "Wonderful! Follow me! Sister Byakuren will prepare rooms for the three of you! Right this way travelers!" the girl exclaimed, pointing her broom down toward the halls.

All three of them entered the spacious temple, the room they were in seemed to be some sort of mess-hall as there were several long tables with dozens of chairs surrounding them. The lighting was provided by a large chandelier that looked simple in design, but did its job well enough, as the room was brightly lit.

The three of them waited patiently for their energetic guide, as she pulled the doors closed. The doors echoed as they were finally closed, with their guide looking fatigued from the effort. She quickly regained her cheerful demeanor as she rejoined them. "Thank you for waiting travelers! That door is tricky to get to close! But sister Shou can seemingly close them without effort…Anyways please follow me! Sister Byakuren should be in her room meditating!" Their guide showed them their way out of the mess hall, and into the temple's halls.

The hallways were quite small, only being big enough to have two people walk side-to-side at a time from the looks of it, which was surprising from the size of the building. The group followed their eager guide through these halls, walking single file as they passed by several rooms. Most of them having their doors closed, concealing their interiors from any passerby coming through the halls.

"Ah, here's sister Byakuren's room!" the guide announced to the three of them as the approached the end of the hall, where a door sat, the door looked exactly like all the others with the exception of being marked with a sign that read 'Byakuren Hijiri' over the door. "Just one moment travelers!" the girl said, turning her attention to the door.

She lightly tapped on the door, "Sister Byakuren, we have three visitors! They'd like to rest here for the night, may I come in?" the girl asked, waiting for a response from Byakuren.

There was a short pause before she received a reply, "Certainly Kyouko, I'd like to meet our new guests. Please enter." A kind sounding voice called from inside, her tone sounding reminiscent of a loving mother.

"Thank you sister Byakuren!" Kyouko replied cheerfully as she opened the door gently, revealing a young looking woman within the room.

The room was mostly plain, with just a bed sitting in the corner of the room and a small desk sitting by the wall opposite to the bed. There was a few scrolls peppering the surface of the desk, but were placed in an orderly fashion. But the decor of the room wasn't what caught everyone's attention; it was the room's occupant.

Her hair was long and light brown, with a light hue of purple at her hair roots. Her dress was black and white, with black stripes going across her chest. There were also white stripes on the end of her sleeves, the stripes crossing one another similar to the way the black stripes going down across her chest. She also wore a long black cape. Her face and figure both made her look quite youthful, she didn't look a day over twenty-five.

She sat with her legs crossed and her eyes closed; she looked like she was in a deep meditation. She opened her eyes and gave the group a warm smile as they entered the room. "Ah good evening, it's a pleasure to have new faces here at the temple, and a familiar one as well. It's good to see you at our temple again, Miss Koishi, I hope you have been well."

"You remember me! That makes me feel all nice and warm inside!" Koishi exclaimed cheerfully. She was obviously happy at being recognized by the monk.

Byakuren lightly giggled at her response, "Why of course I remember you, you were always one of the more memorable guests at our temple." Byakuren turned her attention to the two unfamiliar faces in the room, Flandre and Meiling. "I see you've found yourself a pair of companions. I am Byakuren Hijiri, you could say I am the owner of this temple, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Byakuren greeted.

"It's an honor to meet you lady Byakuren, I've heard of your exploits in helping our kind. You're truly a hero in the eyes of youkai everywhere!" Meiling said, looking at Byakuren with great respect.

Byakuren raised her hand slightly and began to speak once again, "I am flattered by your compliments, but I'm no hero. I am but a simple monk who just wants to help spread peace and prosperity between the youkai and humans in this paradise." She said with a humble smile. "Now please tell me if I'm wrong, but you two wouldn't happen to be Flandre Scarlet and Hong Meiling?" Byakuren asked, changing the subject all together.

"Y-Yes, how did you know?" Meiling asked in surprise.

Byakuren giggled in amusement, "I take it that I was correct in my assumption then? Forgive me if I startled you. I thought I recognized you, you're those two youkai that have a large bounty on their heads, no?"

Flandre and Meiling both nodded together to answer, Byakuren's smile faltered and turned into a small frown. "I'm sorry to hear you've run into such misfortune…I also hear that the one behind this bounty is your own sister, little one." At the mentioning of her sister Flandre's mood soured, no longer looking happy. "I won't claim to understand why she would do something like this to her own sister, but I can help the two of you with your plight." Byakuren rose up from the ground and brushed herself off. "Kyouko, why don't you turn in for the night? I'll take care of our visitors from here on out." Byakuren said to their young guide.

Kyouko gave Byakuren a salute in response, "Yes sister Byakuren! Thank you, and rest well!" Kyouko turned her attention to Flandre and Koishi, who were standing idly by. "It was nice meeting you! I hope we can become friends! Good night!" and with that, the green haired girl ran out the room, presumably returning to her room for the night.

"Ah, such an energetic child…and so eager to help others…she'll make a fine priest one day." Byakuren said as she watched Kyouko's disappearing figure go down the halls. "Anyways, why don't you three follow me and I'll show you to your rooms." Byakuren said, gesturing the group to the now wide-open door.

The three departed from Byakuren's room and followed her down the hallway, going in the opposite direction they had been going while they had followed Kyouko. The halls were just as empty as before, with only the four of them being the only ones awake at this hour seemingly, besides Kyouko, who they saw once again as she laid her treasured broom against the wall by her bed before closing the door.

Byakuren eventually guided the three of them to three doors, each of them opened and obviously unoccupied. "Here are your rooms for the night, I hope you find your rooms satisfactory and you enjoy your stay here with us. If you need anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask me."

"Thanks Miss Byakuren!" Flandre chirped happily to the monk.

"Oh ho, it's no problem little one. This temple is here to help youkai with their dilemmas after all…" Byakuren shrugged off humbly, "I wish you a good night's sleep, you three and remember you may stay as long as you'd like!" Byakuren said happily, leaving the three to themselves as she slowly walked back to her room.

"Well this sure beats sleeping outdoors…last time we did that I could've sworn a bug crawled up my nose…" Meiling mumbled to herself as she went into one of the rooms Byakuren had provided for them. "Well goodnight you two, don't let the bed-bugs bite." Meiling said as she closed the door behind herself.

"Night China! Night Flanny! I'll see you two tomorrow!" Koishi said cheerfully, taking the room to the right of Meiling's closing the door behind her, just as Meiling had done.

Flandre followed suit and took the room to the left of Meiling's, and closed the door behind her as well. She found that the room was almost identical to Byakuren's, only having a simple bed in the corner of the room and a small desk opposite to it. There was also a small closet in the room, but aside from that, the room was bare. Flandre didn't mind the room's bareness though, as it was almost like her room in the Scarlet Devil Mansion, except that this bed was in much better condition than the one she had.

Flandre quickly changed out her day clothes and into her simple night gown and plopped down onto her bed, and plopped on to the bed. It took a long time for her mind to finally shut down and finally fall asleep, as excitement for what tomorrow would bring was drowning her mind. It was a sensation she had never felt before, she had never looked forward to the next day before.

* * *

"…Flandre… why did you leave the basement? …I thought I told you to stay there Flandre…"

_Not this dream….Anything but this dream…_Flandre pleaded to herself, as her dream from a few nights before returned to her mind, finding herself to once again be in that endless field of white flowers, and wearing that same white dress, just like the first time. Flandre wanted to awaken from this nightmare, but she found that she couldn't, she was being forced to relive her nightmare until the end.

"You should have stayed in the basement Flandre…I'm very disappointed in you…"

_Wake up…Wake up…Wake up, Wake up, WAKE UP! _Flandre pleaded to herself once more, and once again failing to regain consciousness.

"The basement is the only place suitable for a disgusting monster like you… Flandre…"

"Pl-Please Remy…N-No more…" Flandre pleaded to her sister's apparition, looking just as disgusted as the first time she had been the first time in her dreams.

Remilia just gave her groveling younger sibling an icy cold glare, looking absolutely disgusted by the sight of her. "You're a disgrace to our family, Flandre…I can't bear to look at you any longer."

"Re-Remy I…I…"

"It's time to put an end to you, and correct the mistake that mother and father have made…Goodbye, sister."

* * *

Two rooms over, a more peaceful dream was taking place. Koishi found herself sitting across a human sized rabbit wearing a top-hat at a small table. The table oddly enough sat in the middle of a dark forest, though the table was lit by a small light-bulb that hung from a chain that hung from the sky, seemingly coming from the heavens itself. Koishi's dream world was odd to be sure, as she was having a conversation with the rabbit over a cup of tea.

"Oh Mr. Rabbit, I've been having a wonderful time! You're such a wonderful host!" Koishi said to the rabbit cheerfully.

The rabbit simply twitched its ears in response as it stared at her, its red eyes never once blinking or directing its attention at anything else but Koishi. Most people would have found this unnerving, but Koishi on the other hand seemed unfazed by the rabbit's unmoving eyes, as if it were completely natural.

"Why thank you! You're great company to be around too! And it is a nice hat, isn't it? Big sister gave it to me a long time ago!" Koishi said in response, looking at her hat with pride in her eyes.

The rabbit once again said nothing. It simply sat still on its chair, its eyes still focused on Koishi.

"You know who'd have fun at our parties Mr. Rabbit? Flandre! She's really nice and makes me feel warm in my chest, even when it's cold out!" Koishi said happily, as her thoughts went to her new vampire friend.

"Pl-Please Remy…N-No more…" Flandre's voice said, lacking its usual cheerfulness and replaced with a much sadder tone. Flandre's voice seemed to come from everywhere, making it impossible to pinpoint where it was coming from.

"Huh? Flanny?" Koishi asked, as she looked up to the sky. "Hmmmm…Flanny sounds sad…Maybe I should go check on her…" Koishi mumbled to herself as she got out of her chair. "Sorry Mr. Rabbit, I gotta check up on Flanny, she sounds really sad…"

The rabbit was unresponsive as before, still staring at Koishi's seat as it scratched itself with its leg.

"Oh you're so understanding, Mr. Rabbit! Next time I'll bring Flan with me! Then we can all have fun! See you next time!" Koishi said as she jumped off from the ground and began to fly up towards the sky, leaving the odd rabbit and mysterious forest behind.

* * *

Back in Flandre's dream, the apparition of her sister slowly closed in on her, with the same black knife gripped in her right hand. Flandre was seemingly paralyzed, as the vampire couldn't urge her body to move in the slightest, with the only thing she could do is watch as her own sister closed in on her with murderous intent.

"Pl-Please sister…I-I love you…I-I'd never try to do anything to hurt or upset y-you…p-please…I'll do a-anything to make you happy again…e-even go back into the basement…" Flandre stuttered to her sister, her anxiety growing more and more with each step her elder sister took.

Remilia simply shook her head, "No. It's too late to reconcile with me, you've been an embarrassment to me and our family long enough, Flandre. If you truly want to please me, then accept this fate and die." Remilia replied coldly as she reached Flandre, raising the blade just above Flandre's heart. "Any last words, dear sister?" Remilia asked, her expression looking emotionless as she spoke.

"Y-Yes…" Flandre mumbled as tears dripped down her face, "I…I'm sorry big sister…"

Remilia looked completely disgusted by her sister's final words, "Your apologies mean nothing to me, and your tears are one last disgrace our family, at least die with dignity you little demon…"

"Flaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnny! Are you here?" Koishi's voice echoed, causing Flandre to gasp in surprise. Remilia seemed to not notice Koishi's call, as her glare was still affixed upon her little sister.

"K…Koishi?" Flandre called back, looking around for the satori, but she was seemingly out of sight. But soon found that she was wrong, as when she turned back to where her sister stood, she instead found Koishi, looking as happy as she's always been since the two met.

Koishi wasn't in her regular outfit though, as she was wearing the same white, one-piece dress as Flandre was, but her black sunhat was nowhere to be found.

Flandre was completely stunned by the satori's coming, finding it to be hard to formulate any words, much less a sentence. Fortunately for her, Koishi decided to break the silence.

"Oh there you are Flanny! I was looking for you!" Koishi said blissfully, not seeming at all mystified by her new surroundings, or her new pair of clothing for that matter.

"Wh-Where'd big sister go…? Wh-What are you doing here?" Flandre asked, not yet recovered from her anxiety.

Koishi put a finger to her mouth and threw an arm around Flandre's shoulder, "I dunno…I heard your voice, so I decided to check on you…you didn't sound happy, so I came to make you feel all good inside, just like you make me feel! But I don't know about any big sister…I just saw a meanie, so I made her go away." Koishi explained. The way she spoke made it sound like this was an everyday occurrence to her.

"You…made her go away?" Flandre asked in confusion.

"Uh-huh! That mean purple haired lady was making Flan-chan cry, so I made her go away!" Koishi said enthusiastically, she looked pleased with herself as she explained.

Flandre didn't understand anymore of what Koishi had said since their conversation had begun, but still felt relieved that the nightmarish dream version of her sister had disappeared and was replaced with her scatterbrained friend. Though the vampire still had one question left on her mind to ask her friend, "Koishi…Is this…Is this all just a dream?" Flandre asked, looking to the satori as she waited for an answer from her.

"Don't be so silly Flanny; of course it's a dream!" Koishi replied without skipping a beat. Koishi looked up to the sky for a few moments with a blank expression on her face, "Oh poo…I gotta go…I'll see you later Flan." Koishi said, as she slowly began to floating off from the ground.

"W-Wait! Where are you going?" Flandre asked as she watched her friend slowly float away into the sky.

"Back into my own dream silly! You can be so funny sometimes Flan-chan…" Koishi replied as she slowly grew farther and farther away, "Oh! Before I forget! You should have tea with me and Mr. Rabbit sometime! He really wants to meet you! Bye!" Koishi added before slowly fading away from vision, her last words not making a lick of sense to Flandre as the world around her slowly went dark, until all she could see was darkness.

* * *

It was morning in Gensokyo, and its various residents have begun to go about their business for the day, which was exactly what Aya, 'Gensokyo's ace reporter' as she called herself, was doing. She had begun making her newspaper deliveries for the day, which had another front-page story about Remilia's bounty, which was a part of the deal between her and Remilia herself.

Aya began to slowly descend to her last destination in her news route, the Scarlet Devil Mansion. She kept her eyes peeled for any possible stories as she did, but without any luck. She landed at the imposing front gate of the mansion, where the mansion's new gate-keeper was situated at.

Aya approached the girl slowly, taking her sight in as she began to formulate any possible way she could make a new story out of the girl for her newspaper. "Hey there short-stack, how's the new job going?" Aya asked as she began digging in her bag for a paper to give the girl.

"Rumia is no short-stack; Rumia is as tall as great mountain! Taller than stupid mountain you tengu live on!" Rumia shouted, pouting at Aya's remark about her height.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Here's Remilia's paper." Aya replied nonchalantly, handing Rumia the newest issue of the Bunbunmaru.

"Feh, Rumia wonders who'd read this fish-wrap!" Rumia said looking disgusted as she glimpsed at the paper.

"Ayayaya!? Y-You little twerp! You're calling my newspaper mere fish-wrapping!?" Aya asked in absolute shock, she began to look ill upon hearing her paper being slandered.

"Rumia calls it how Rumia see's it." She replied, folding her arms in defiance.

"How dare you! You probably can't even read you grammar-impaired brat!" Aya shouted angrily, obviously not taking any insults sitting down.

"Rumia's reading level is beside the point fish-wrap girl. Mistress told Rumia to tell reporter girl to go see her once Rumia saw her."

"Eh? What's she want?" Aya asked curiously.

"Mistress not tell Rumia, she just tell Rumia to be messenger girl. Now go away reporter-girl, Rumia is trying to guard pretty gates for mistress!" Rumia shouted, swatting at Aya with the newspaper she had just given her, making the reporter retreat from the gates and towards the mansion.

"Ayayayaya! Alright, alright! I'm going!" Aya shouted at the girl, flying up to the second floor as opposed to using the front door like a normal person normally would.

Rumia sighed to herself and readjusted her new black beret, "Rumia never knew guarding silly gates would be so hard…Or so boring…Maybe Rumia should take nap…Or maybe invite Cirno over. She makes Rumia laugh." Rumia thought aloud as she resumed her guarding position now that Aya was gone.

Aya tapped on Remilia's study window, where the mansion's mistress was sitting at her desk, patiently waiting for the Tengu. She motioned for her to come in, albeit with an irritated look on her face.

Aya nodded in response and opened the window, gliding into the mansion slowly. "Gensokyo's ace reporter, Aya Shameimaru is on the scene!" Aya shouted to no one in particular as she made her dynamic entrance, doing an odd looking pose as she held her fan above her head.

Remilia gave her a sarcastic round of applause, rolling her eyes at Aya's antics. "Bravo…Bravo…Now if only the ace reporter could use the front door like a normal person would…"

"So whatcha want Miss Scarlet? I got stories to write and papers to print! The Bunbunmaru has been selling like hotcakes since I posted that story on your bounty, and I got a lot of things to do!" Aya said impatiently, ignoring Remilia's sarcastic remarks.

"So I've seen…Now Miss Ace reporter we have some…things to discuss." Remilia said, motioning to the chair across from her desk. Aya took the hint and plopped down onto the cushioned seat.

"Ooh! Really!? More details on the story I can use!? I could use some more dramatic responses from you; you know something that'll really get the readers hooked! Something emotional! Something from the heart!" Aya said in excitement as she quickly tore out her notepad and pen in a flash, she was literally trembling in excitement.

"No, Aya…" Remilia growled, slowly pushing Aya's notepad down. "I wanted to ask about your last paper…"

"What about it? I sold hundreds of it on the first day! It was a personal record for me and my paper…ah we've come so far…I wiped the floor with Kakashi spirit news! It was so satisfying…Maybe that rookie'll finally learn that writing newspapers just isn't her specialty…" Aya rambled on.

"No…Aya…" Remilia growled, her patience growing thin with the scatter brained reporter. "I wanted ask about the picture you used…How in the hell did you get a color version of it!? I gave you a black and white photo…Did I not?"

"Oh that? Well since it was a really special edition of the Bunbunmaru, the pictures were printed in color! It took a lot of effort to fix that picture up though…Thank you photoshop! I knew buying one of those outside world contraptions would come in handy one day! Thanks toyour story and my photoshop skills, I sold so many papers that I ran out of ink!" Aya exclaimed cheerfully, sounding utterly pleased with her recent success.

"You…What?" Remilia asked, looking outright furious.

"I fixed that old picture up, made it in color using photoshop, that's what I said. Uh, something wrong? You're…kinda starting to scare me here." Aya said, growing slightly nervous as Remilia started cursing under her breath.

"I never gave you permission to do that! Get rid of that picture and use the one I gave you, and do NOT tamper with it again you imbecile!" Remilia yelled, slightly startling the reporter with her outburst.

"Yikes! Alright, alright! I'm sorry! I'll fix it right up as soon as I get back to Youkai Mountain!" Aya exclaimed, putting her hands in between Remilia and herself defensively. Suddenly Aya had an idea, not wanting to waste such an opportunity, Aya spoke up. "I'll do that…If I get a heartfelt interview with you about the recent news, deal?" Aya asked, her mouth forming a cocky smirk as she made the proposition.

"Hmph…You tengu will do anything for a story…very well, you may interview me about these recent events, just so long as you keep your end of the bargain, crow." Remilia replied coldly. "Also…Make sure to mention that the bounty is now being raised to one-million yen."

"Yes! My paper will be the talk of all of Gensokyo after this!" Aya cried victoriously, "Don't worry Miss Scarlet; I'll have that picture fixed up and have that bounty raised for you in no time, tengu's honor!"

"Tengu have honor? I'd never thought I'd see the day…" Remilia said sarcastically as she rose up from her seat.

"Mind if I ask one thing though? How old is this picture anyways? Its condition is terrible; I thought it'd tear to pieces when I was flying it back to my workshop on the mountain…"

"If you must know, it was taken over four-hundred and ninety-five years ago, just before I asked Flandre to do what was best and have her live in the basement…" Remilia said, her face showing a twinge of guilt as she spoke.

"Huh, well she sure looked happy in this picture…More so compared to when I took pictures of her for the 'Shoot the bullet' project." Aya thought to herself aloud as she glimpsed at the picture of a happy looking Flandre, who was embracing her elder-sister. "Too bad your grouchy maid busted my camera and all of my pictures…and my nose…" Aya muttered, rubbing her nose as she recalled one of the more unpleasant incidents in her career as a reporter.

"Maybe that'll teach you to intrude in my home uninvited." Remilia nonchalantly replied, "Now if you would, please show yourself out. I'm heading out and I'd prefer it if I didn't have any pests annoying my staff in my absence…" Remilia said as she walked towards the door, picking up a large pink umbrella that sat nearby it.

"Heading out? Where to?" Aya asked quizzically.

"Oh just going to pay a visit to a friend is all…" Remilia replied as she opened the door. "Now go fix your mistake, reporter." Remilia commanded before slamming the door behind her, leaving Aya alone in her study.

"You can count on me Miss Scarlet! Gensokyo's ace reporter never fails!"Aya called back, "Hmmmmm…I wonder if I can find any scoops if I snoop around her study a bit…" Aya said as devious grin stretched across her face.

* * *

Back at Myouren temple, many of its residents were also beginning to start their day, including their new guests. Flandre groggily began to open her eyes, yawning loudly as she began to wipe the sleep out of her eyes. "Mmmmmm…That was a weird dream…at first it was scary…but then it wasn't…" Flandre muttered to herself in her half-awake state. "It felt so real too…"

Flandre began to roll on to her side, only to be met with the sight of Koishi wearing a yellow night gown, sleeping soundly next to her, with her arms lightly wrapped around Flandre. Flandre's eyes popped open at the realization that the satori was in her room, and in her bed.

"Koishi? What're you doing…?" Flandre asked to the sleeping satori.

All Flandre got as a response was Koishi's unintelligible muttering in her sleep. "Mmmmmm…Yes I would like more tea…Mr. Rabbit…" Koishi mumbled. From that muttering, Flandre's eyes lit up with recognition, she remembered a very small detail from her dream. In her dream Koishi had mentioned something about a Mr. Rabbit.

Flandre looked at her friend with confusion, "Is it a coincidence…? Or was Koishi really in my…?" Flandre thought to herself aloud as she kept looking at the satori.

Koishi suddenly woke up, sitting up straight on the bed as she wiped her eyes out. "Ungh…Good morning Mr. Hat!" Koishi exclaimed as she looked to her left, but didn't find her hat to greet her. "Mr. Hat? Where'd you go?" Koishi asked as she looked around the room intently for her missing hat. Her eyes eventually instead found Flandre, who was sitting next to her silently as she watched her.

"Flanny! What're you doing in my room? Did you get scared and want to snuggle with me?" Koishi asked, completely oblivious to the fact that it was her who had entered Flandre's room.

"…This isn't your room, this is my room." Flandre stated simply to the satori.

"Oh, is it? Huh…I don't remember wanting to snuggle…My mistake! Mr. Hat must be in my room then!" Koishi said in realization, she plopped off down onto the ground and ran out of the room to go retrieve her prized hat.

Flandre was more confused than ever about the satori, had she really come to her room during the middle of the night unknowingly? That combined with her odd dream made Flandre confused about her new friend. Flandre decided to dismiss these recent events as odd coincidences and get dressed for the day.

Once Flandre was dressed, she found her two companions in the hall, with Meiling leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, and with Koishi just coming out her room as well, now with her black sunhat replanted on her head. Meiling looked up as she heard Flandre's door open, "Oh, Flandre! Good morning, I hope you slept well!" she greeted cheerfully. "And you too Koishi."

"Morning China…I slept okay, thanks." Flandre replied.

"Hmmmmm…Well that's good! Anyways, Kyouko dropped by a little earlier; she wanted me to tell you two that Miss Byakuren would like us to join her and the other temple residents at breakfast." Meiling said with a grin.

"Ooh breakfast! The breakfast here is magical! Let's go Flanny!" Koishi said excitedly, as she took Flandre by the hand and began to drag her along with her as made her way down the hall.

"Oh alright, but the breakfast here better be magical Koishi!" Flandre replied back as she let her friend drag her along. Meiling chuckled at their antics and walked behind the two, following them to the mess hall.

"Oh good morning you three, I hope you've slept well." Byakuren greeted to the three as they entered the room, the small group at the table all quieting down as she spoke. Byakuren was seated at the head of the table.

A purple-haired girl sat at Byakuren's left who had a small cloud-like thing swirling nearby her, but the girl didn't seem bothered at all by it. Two seats over was a brown-haired woman in glasses who had two ears poking out of her head and a large bushy tail, Kyouko was also amongst the group and sat across from the brain-haired woman.

"Good morning Miss Byakuren, I hope you're rest was peaceful." Meiling replied as took a few small glances at the crowd around the table. The crowd of strangers all silently looked at the trio, taking a good look at the temple's newest residents.

"Thank you Meiling, now why don't the three of you take a seat and join us?" Byakuren said kindly, motioning the three of them take a seat amongst their small group.

The three did as she said and each took a seat, with Meiling taking a spot at Byakuren's right, and Koishi taking a spot in between Meiling and Kyouko. Flandre decided to take a seat between the purple haired woman and the one in glasses, both gave her a friendly smile as sat down, making all three of them feel at ease sitting at the table.

"May I have your attention everyone," Byakuren said, grabbing everyone's attention. "I would like to introduce to you our new guests at the temple, Meiling, Flandre and a familiar face, Koishi. I expect that each of you will show them kindness and help them out in any way possible. Now, why don't we all introduce ourselves?"

The purple haired woman spoke up first, "I'm Ichirin Kumoi, and this here is my friend Unzan." Ichirin said, pointing to the small cloud that floated near her, it formed into an elderly looking man's face; it formed a small smile and gave the three a polite wave before resuming its idle floating. "He's a little shy around others, but he says he's happy to meet you two, and see you again Miss Koishi."

The next person to introduce herself was Kyouko, despite them already having met her, she introduced herself anyways. "I'm Kyouko Kasodani! I'm happy to meet you all! A friend and I are in a band, Sister Byakuren's letting us perform a show tonight at the temple, and I hope you'll all show up!" Kyouko sat back down at her spot, and let the last member at the table introduce herself.

"Oy, hey there, how's it going? I'm Mamizou Futatsuiwa, great to meet ya." The brown haired woman said, grabbing Flandre's hand and shaking it vigorously. "If you ever got any issues, just come see me and I'll see what I can do."

"Yeah! Miss Mami's great with helping others with their problems!" Kyouko added cheerfully.

Mamizou gave a throaty laugh at her compliment, "Hahaha, thanks there Kyouko, I try my best."

"There are others in the temple, but they're off doing other duties to help us out at the time being, I'm sure that the other residents will also lend a helping hand to you three if you're ever in need of assistance." Byakuren said with a smile. "Now then, why don't we all enjoy this meal and one another's company now?"

Everyone began to resume their meals, conversing about so-and-so and laughing about old times. The way they treated one another was similar to that of a happy family, it was something Flandre hasn't felt a part of for years. At that moment, she knew she would enjoy her stay at the temple.

* * *

**A/N: Ah finally, another chapter down! I've been looking forward to completing this one, as this chapter(and the upcoming ones) will be starring one of my favorite casts of the TouHou series, UFO. If you're wondering why Shou, Nazirin and the other Myouren temple gang didn't show up, it's because it'd simply be too hard to introduce so many characters at once, so I settled on just introducing the ones seen so far. But don't worry, the rest of the UFO gang will show up in future chapters.**

**Other than the rest of the UFO cast missing, the only other real note I have is about that dream scene...I really hope it didn't get too confusing...That was my only real concern when posting this chapter honestly.**

**I'd like to thank those who reviewed the last chapter, as your reviews help encourage me to keep on writing this thing, especially since I'm still a rookie when it comes to writing. I seriously appreciate the support! I'm hoping to have the next chapter posted at a reasonable time...Though I may take a small break from it for a while...so we'll see. xP Hope to see you next chapter!  
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	14. Chapter 14: Therapy

Myouren temple was an active place, more active than any other area that Flandre and Meiling have visited since their adventure had begun. Whereas Eientei had several rabbits doing the household chores similar to how the fairy maids did at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, Myouren temple instead had many of its residents pitching in to help out. The efforts put forth by the temple's resident youkai were much more effective than the work Meiling and Flandre had seen the fairy maids and rabbits do.

Most of the youkai looked like they were doing the chores of their own volition rather than being asked to do it, as each of them always had a smile on their faces as they worked. Ichirin and Unzan were busying themselves with the temple's laundry, but even then they were kind enough to drop their work to assist anyone who needed any help. Mamizou was taking care of the temple's financials, as she apparently had experience with money from the outside world.

Kyouko, along with her usual cleaning duties as the temple's janitor, was chosen as the guide to the temple's three newest visitors to show them the ropes, she seemed optimistic at being chosen for the job, that or she was excited about the concert her band would be doing later that day. She had decided on taking the group with her to the temple's outer entrance to clean the front path, as it was overdue for a good sweeping.

"And that's how you sweep the floors!" Kyouko exclaimed after giving a rather lengthy explanation on how to do her job. "Any questions?" she asked the pair of Flandre and Koishi, with Meiling being absent from doing some other task for the temple instead of learning about the proper ways of handling a broom from Kyouko.

Flandre and Koishi shook their heads in response, making Kyouko's smile grow even larger. "Great! Now let's sweep until the temple is spotless!" Kyouko cheered as she handed each of them a broom identical to her own. She began to energetically sweep the temple grounds, making a small cloud of dust form around her feet as she did.

The two of them followed Kyouko's example, both of them sweeping the ground vigorously until the temple's path was free from dirt. As they swept the floor clean from dirt, Kyouko was trying to make conversation with her two new sweeping partners.

"So how do you like the temple so far?" Kyouko asked, "I personally love it here! Everyone's so nice…It's kind of like one big family!"

"It's fantastic! Miss Byakuren's so nice, and she smells good, and her smile reminds me of big sister!" Koishi exclaimed, beginning to start one of her sessions of rambling on again.

"I'm glad! Sister Byakuren said that you seem a lot happier now than you were before." Kyouko stated plainly, "She says that you seem to have more of a flare of life now than you used to, she told me you use to almost seem to be lifeless."

"Do I?" Koishi asked, apparently oblivious to the changes Kyouko mentioned. "I don't feel much different than before…except my stomach feels warmer now..."

"Huh…Well as long as you're happy, then everything is just wonderful!" Kyouko said enthusiastically, "What about you Flan-chan? Are you enjoying your stay?"

Flandre didn't seem to be paying attention to the conversation at all and was absent-mindedly sweeping the ground; she didn't hear the question and simply kept on sweeping one small area with a blank expression on her face.

"Flandre? Hey, hello? Anyone there?" Kyouko asked as she waved her hand in front of the vampire's face in an attempt to grab her attention.

"Huh? Did you say something?" Flandre asked as she was snapped out of her distracted state.

"I asked if you're enjoying your stay at the temple silly!" Kyouko said, giggling softly as she kept on sweeping the entryway diligently.

"Sorry…I was thinking about my big sister…" Flandre apologized.

"Huh? You have an elder sister? Is she nice like sister Byakuren? Or brave like sister Shou?" Kyouko asked.

Flandre nodded, "Big sis's one of the greatest people I know, she's at the top of the list with Meiling. Though she kinda acts like she knows everything even when she doesn't sometimes…" Flandre trailed off as she reminisced about Remilia.

"One of the greatest? She must be really spectacular! What's she done that's so great though?" Kyouko asked, looking genuinely curious about what kind of person Remilia is.

"Well…One time big sis covered Gensokyo in a lot of red mist, she beat up some moon people with Saky to save the moon from them…and Meiling told me that she went to the moon once." Flandre said as she tried to list the most notable things her sister had done in the past years.

"Your sister went to the moon!?" Koishi exclaimed, "The big circle that shows up in the sky at night!?"

"Uh-huh, I dunno why though…" Flandre replied. "She flew there on a rocket-ship…Or at least that's what Meiling said."

"Awwwwww! I wish my big sister would go to the moon…then she could bring me back a souvenir…" Koishi grumbled. "Flanny's big sister sounds so much cooler than mine…"

"Wow that's incredible! Not even sister Byakuren's done that before!" Kyouko exclaimed in awe, "Your big sister sounds amazing! Like some sort of super-hero or something!"

"Thanks…I just hope she isn't mad at me…" Flandre said sadly.

"Why'd she be mad? Did you do something mean like a pull a really nasty prank?" Kyouko asked, "I'm sure your sister won't be too mad as long as you're sorry."

Flandre shook her head. "No, nothing like that…I kinda ran away from home with Meiling to explore the world…I'm afraid she hates me now…"

"That's not true!" Kyouko exclaimed, surprising both Flandre and Koishi with her outburst. "I'm sure your big sister is thinking about you right now, and she's waiting for you to return safe and sound!"

"You really think so?"

"I know so! Big sisters are supposed to worry about their siblings!" Kyouko insisted, "Just ask Koishi, I'll bet her sister worries about her!"

Koishi nodded cheerfully "Uh-huh! Big sister always says how worried she is about me! She always asks me if I have enough clothes or if I'm brushing my teeth or not or if I eat enough! I'll bet Flanny's big sister home right now worrying about you!"

"I'm making big sis worry? I don't want her to be worried sick about me! What have I done!?" Flandre cried, looking remorseful as an image of her sister being worried sick about her came to her mind.

"No wait! Um…I'm sure she's worried about you…but she knows you have Meiling with you so um…She knows you'll be okay!" Kyouko struggled to say, "Man…Miss Mamy is so much better with words than I am…" Kyouko mumbled under her breath as she scratched the back of her head in thought. "Anyways do you understand what I'm trying to say here?"

Flandre nodded, "Kinda…You're saying Remy is worried about me…But knows that I'll be alright?" Flandre asked, with Kyouko happily shaking her head up and down. She looked relieved that Flandre had understood. "Thanks Kyouko, I feel a little better now…"

Kyouko sheepishly laughed at the compliment, "Shucks, it's no problem…Just a part of being a priest in training…" Kyouko said as she finished sweeping. "But maybe you should talk to Miss Mamizou, she's much better with words than I am! If she wanted to, I'll bet she could be a great priest!"

Koishi stopped sweeping and her eyes seemed to widen, as if she had some sort of brilliant idea pop into her mind. She turned and faced Flandre with an eager smile, "That's it Flanny! Let's go talk to the raccoon lady!" Koishi exclaimed as she took her by the arm, causing Flandre to drop her broom.

"Huh?" was all Flandre could think to say as she stared at her with bewilderment. Koishi began dragging her towards the temple as soon as she got a solid grip on her friend's wrist.

"Yeah! We're gonna go see Mami!" Koishi said happily, "She'll be able to help you with your problems! Plus her tail is nice and soft…" Koishi said dreamily at her reminiscence.

As Koishi dragged Flandre to the temple, she passed by Ichirin and Unzan, both of them were carrying baskets filled with freshly washed laundry.

"Well done you three, you did a lovely job…Hey where are you two going?" Ichirin asked as she watched Koishi dragging Flandre along with her.

"We're gonna go see the raccoon lady!" Koishi shouted back to her before disappearing from sight into the temple, with a bewildered Flandre in tow.

"Um…Alright, have fun then…" Ichirin said as she gave one last glance at the doorway that Koishi disappeared through. She looked to her longtime friend and guardian with an eyebrow raised, as if looking to him for an answer, but he was just as clueless as his master was and just gave her a shrug in reponse.

"They're going to go visit Miss Mamizou, I think Koishi wanted Flandre to talk to her or something…" Kyouko said, clearing the situation up for the two.

"Ah, I see. Miss Mamizou is great with words, I'm sure she just wanted to talk about her problems with her. Sister Byakuren did say that she did have a few family problems from the sound of it…" Ichirin said as she and Unzan made their way to the clothesline. "Anyways, you did an excellent job with the cleaning again Kyouko, I swear the temple has never been so clean before." Ichirin complemented, with Unzan nodding in agreement.

"Oh thank you sister Ichirin, and brother Unzan! I try my best!"

Ichirin laughed lightly as she set the basket down, with Unzan following suit. "You're welcome Kyouko, just keep up the excellent work." Ichirin said as she started hanging clothes up, as Unzan handed her different articles of clothing as she did. The two made an excellent team, with the chore being done at a quick rate.

"Oh I will sister Ichirin! I'll make this temple proud!" Kyouko said enthusiastically as she gave her a salute.

"I'm sure you will, Kyouko." Ichirin replied. Unzan took a small break from handing clothes to his partner to whisper into her ear, what he said being inaudible to all but Ichirin. "Oh, and Unzan thinks so too!" Ichirin added, speaking for her silent partner.

"Why thank you Unzan, I appreciate the compliment!" Kyouko replied cheerfully. Unzan smiled happily in response, but didn't utter a single word. He quickly returned to assisting Ichirin in hanging the laundry, handing her another pair of clothes.

"Oh by the way Kyouko, have you seen where everyone else has run off to?" Ichirin asked. "I haven't seen Murasa or Nue around the temple since this morning, and those two have been slacking on their chores lately…"

Kyouko paused to think for a bit before shrugging in response, "Well…Murasa said she was going out for a bit, but never said where…and I think Nue might be hanging out at the cemetery again maybe…" Kyouko replied, not sounding all too sure of her answer.

Ichirin sighed in exasperation, rubbing her temples stressfully. "Well I suppose as long as they're not out causing trouble everything is alright…I just wish they'd help out a bit more." Ichirin said as she finished hanging up the last of the clothes to dry, letting the wind take care of the rest of the work. "Anyways, why don't you go inside and take a break? I'm sure you could use one."

"Ah thank you sister Ichirin!" Kyouko said, picking up the brooms Flandre and Koishi had left behind before leaving Ichirin and Unzan by themselves.

"My, she sure is an energetic one, isn't she?" Ichirin said, with Unzan silently nodding in agreement.

* * *

Remilia leisurely flew to through the sky, holding a parasol over herself. Sakuya was unusually absent, as the maid would usually always be at her side whenever she went out, but Remilia had insisted on making this trip alone as it was a personal matter. Remilia soon reached her destination, Gensokyo's local run-down Shinto shrine, the Hakurei shrine. She landed down directly in front of it, causing leaves to crunch as her feet made contact with the ground.

Nearby was a medium sized box with a small note attached to it that said 'donations.' It was a simple note, but it was straight to the point, not that the box was ever filled with any form of money very often. It was usually instead filled with leaves or rocks, which always infuriated the shrine's owner to no end.

"Hmmmmm…Where's that shrine maiden…?" Remilia asked herself as she took a look around the shrine, it looked like the shrine could collapse on itself at any given moment with the condition it was in.

"You looking for the cranky shrine maiden?" a squeaky voice asked, causing Remilia to turn around, only to find a trio of fairies behind her. She oddly enough didn't seem to sense their presences at all until now.

One of the fairies had long black hair and wore a blue and white dress, another had short blonde hair that was tied in a pair of pigtails and wore a red and white dress, and the last wore a completely white dress that had several small black bows going down the front, with her blonde hair arranged into three curls on each side.

"Oh, well if it isn't the three twits of light." Remilia replied as she faced the three fairies with a smug smile on her face.

"That's the three fairies of light to you!" the three of them said in unison irritably.

"Yes, yes whatever…Do you three know where Reimu is? I have some business to discuss with her." Remilia said as she stifled a yawn. She wasn't quite used to being out and about at this hour of the day, but she was too impatient to wait any longer and wanted to get this meeting over with.

"We're not telling you anything!" The one in blue yelled defiantly, crossing her arms as if to emphasize her point. Her name was Star if Remilia's memory was correct.

"Yeah! We aren't telling you anything!" The one in red said as she and her other companion nodded their heads in agreement, also crossing their arms just like Star was. This one was Sunny Milk, the leader of the group if her memory did recall correctly.

"Yeah! We ain't tellin' you nothin' unless you give us some booze!" The one in all white said, earning her two sighs of exasperation from her allies. Remilia determined that this one was the alcoholic of the group, Luna Child.

Remilia chuckled to herself quietly at the fairies defiant behavior, as they glared at the vampire, not that she was at all intimidated by them, their attempts at scaring her off only made the vampire laugh harder.

"What's so funny?" Sunny Milk asked as she furrowed her brow at Remilia.

"You fairies sure are something…" Remilia said as she began to catch her breath from her laughter. "But tell me where Reimu is, or else." Remilia warned as her expression darkened.

"Or else what?" Sunny Milk asked with a snort, with her face forming a cocky grin.

"Yeah! Or else what?" the other two asked together, each of them wearing a cocky grin identical to their leader. The three were obviously not intimidated by Remilia's threat.

"Or else…" Remilia's fangs suddenly grew slightly longer, and her wings grew into an intimidating size, with her eyes beginning to glow a fearsome shade of red. "I'll be painting the shrine red with your blood." Remilia growled.

The three fairies of light's bravado quickly vanished as fear quickly set in. Sunny Milk soon found her two comrades cowering behind, not that she could blame them, as she desperately wanted to follow her friends lead and cower in fear behind the closest object in the immediate area as well. Though she managed to summon up enough courage not to run in terror and point toward the shrine with a shaky hand.

"Sh-She's in the backyard…P-Please don't hurt us!" Sunny Milk pleaded as tears began running down her face in sheer terror.

Remilia's fangs quickly reverted back to their normal length, along with her wings. "Thank you, I'll be taking my leave now." Remilia said simply as she turned her back to the three cowering fairies and leisurely made her way toward the shrine's backyard. "Farewell, the three twits of light."

The three fairies of light sighed in relief as Remilia disappeared from sight, "That was close…You guys are lucky I was here to scare her away!" Sunny said, earning her a glare from her two friends.

"Scare her away!? You almost got us killed!" Star screamed in anger as she clenched her hands at her sides.

"Oh y-yeah...well…you were agreeing with me!" Sunny countered, making Star to sheepishly rub the back of her head, with her cheeks turning a rosy red.

"Y-Yeah well…Luna's the one who pissed her off by asking her for alcohol!" Star said, pointing an accusatory finger at Luna in an attempt to throw the blame away from her.

"W-Well…I wouldn't have had to ask if we had any sake!" Luna countered, "Besides, Sunny's the leader! She should take responsibility of her subordinate's actions!" Luna quickly added on to her previous statement, throwing the blame right back to Sunny.

"Shut up Luna! It was Star's idea to talk to her in the first place!"

"Nuh-uh you big liar! It was your idea!"

"Shut up! You're acting dumber than Cirno!" Sunny yelled as she began flying back into the woods.

"Take that back!" Star shouted, chasing after her in anger.

Luna sighed in relief at her success of driving the blame away from herself as she watched Star chase after their supposedly fearless leader. "Maybe I should keep my distance from those two for a while…Hmmmm, I wonder if Mystia's got any sake…or maybe some coffee beans…" she mumbled to herself as she followed after her two bickering friends at a safe distance into the forest where the two were scaring away any wildlife in the area with their heated argument.

* * *

"Koishi are you sure Miss Mamy will be alright with us barging into her room? Meiling says it's rude to barge into places…" Flandre asked as Koishi quickly led her along, earning the two a few odd looks as they trampled along through the temple.

"Of course she'll be alright with it! I do it all the time at home, why wouldn't it be alright now?" Koishi said with a beaming smile. Flandre held back the urge to face-palm at her ignorance on why it was rude to barge into rooms.

Koishi stopped in her tracks once she reached the hallway and looked to both her left and right. "Oh…Hmmmmm…Where's her room again…?" Koishi asked with uncertainty.

"You don't know where her room is?" Flandre asked in disbelief, "You mean we've been running around without a clue where her room is?"

"Noooooo…I know where her room is! I just forgot!"

"Maybe we should ask for directions?" Flandre suggested, "China says there's no shame in asking for help."

Koishi laughed at the notion, "We don't need help! Not while I'm here to guide us through this labyrinth!"

"But you just said you forgot where her room is!"

"It's um…This way!" Koishi exclaimed, ignoring Flandre's protests. Koishi began to drag Flandre along with her again.

Just as soon as she began to move, she immediately ran right into someone else in the hallway, causing both Koishi and Flandre to fall onto the temple floors with a thud.

"Ouchy…That hurt…" Koishi groaned as she picked up her hat, which had fallen off her head at the impact. Koishi began dusting it off before placing it back on her head happily. Flandre readjusted her hat slightly before turning her attention to the one they had knocked into.

"Watch where you're going you brats..." The stranger said with venom in her voice, she obviously didn't appreciate people running into her one bit.

The person Flandre and Koishi had accidentally knocked into had short jet-black hair, and wore an entirely black dress. Her legs were covered by black knee-high stockings; her feet were covered by a pair of completely red shoes. Her most unusual detail was the mismatched pair of appendages she had coming out from her back, on one side of her were three red metallic like things, on the other were three light-blue arrow like tentacles of some sort. It was hard to tell what exactly those appendages were, but they most certainly were not wings from the looks of it.

Koishi and Flandre just gawked at her; she looked quite intimidating as she glared down at the two with her pair of red eyes. The trident she held at her side didn't make help her look any less frightening.

"Wow…You're wings are really pretty…" Flandre said with admiration as she looked directly at the girl's odd looking wings.

"What the hell are you blabbering about kid?" the girl asked angrily, the tone she used making it sound like she had just been insulted. Her expression seemed to grow more and more irritated the longer the pair of Koishi and Flandre were in her presence.

"I mean…Your wings are really pretty! They look amazing!" Flandre clarified for her, but the stranger didn't seem to grow any less angry.

"Is that it? Whatever just watch where you're going next time you little brats…" The girl grumbled as she stormed off.

She headed off toward the end of the hall, passing by a tall blonde haired woman; she knocked into her with her shoulder, but didn't bother to stop to apologize as she kept walking down the hall until she was out of sight.

The blonde haired woman glared at her for a few moments with anger in her eyes; grumbling some incoherent words as she approached the pair before her. "I hope that Nue didn't give you two too much trouble, I apologize on her behalf if she did anything to offend you." The woman said kindly, the tone in her voice reminded Flandre of the way Meiling would speak when a situation would become serious.

The blonde-haired woman was quite tall, she towered over the pair; the two of them wouldn't be surprised if she were a good head taller than Meiling. She had an orange hair decoration of some sort resting on her head, and wore a red robe-like dress with long baggy white sleeves. Resting on her shoulders was a white-shawl, not unlike the one Flandre had seen Iku wear. Her expression looked strict, but somehow at the same time approachable.

"Anyways…are you two lost?" the woman asked, "I noticed you two have been running around in circles for a while now."

"Yeah, thanks to Koishi's great sense of direction…" Flandre grumbled under her breath. Koishi either didn't hear her comment or just didn't care, as she didn't bother to say anything back to her.

"Yeah, Flanny and I are a little lost..." Koishi admitted sheepishly, "Do you know where the raccoon lady's room is…?" Koishi asked.

"You mean Mamizou? Follow me, I'll show you two the way." The tall woman said as she gestured for the two of them to follow her.

Flandre and Koishi exchanged glances with one another before nodding together, the two walked single file behind their guide, as she silently walked through the halls, the only sound that could be heard in the halls were the tapping of their shoes against the temple's floors.

Their guide suddenly stopped in her tracks right next to a door, "Here we are, Mamizou's room, she should be in there last I checked." Their guide announced much to the pair's relief.

"Thanks for the help lady." Flandre said, giving her a small curtsy in thanks, just like she had seen her sister do long ago. Koishi gave her a puzzled look before mimicking her friend.

"Yeah, thanks for the help lady…" Koishi mumbled.

"No problem, just give me a call if you ever find yourselves lost again." The woman began to walk away but paused for a moment, "Oh, and if Nue ever gives you any trouble just come to me, I'll set her straight." The woman said before finally leaving. By the time she was out of sight, the two realized they never learned what her name was.

"Well…? Knock on the door Flanny!" Koishi said as her eyes darted to the door, as if to gesture her into knocking on it.

Flandre did as she said and gently knocked on the door, she learned to be gentler with doors after a few incidents where she had accidentally blown the door off its hinges without trying several times. But Koishi didn't seem to be pleased with Flandre's attempt at gentleness with the door, shaking her head in disapproval.

Koishi sighed, "That's not how you knock on doors Flanny! Here, I'll show you how to do it right!" Koishi said as she gently pushed Flandre out of the way to work her door-opening magic.

As it turned out, the correct way of knocking on a door was Koishi pounding both of her arms into the door repeatedly while yelling "Let us in!" Flandre was glad that no one else besides her was there to witness her friend's childish antics.

Just as it looked like Mamizou's door couldn't take much more punishment from Koishi's pounding on it, it creaked open. Mamizou stared down at the two from her room with a puzzled expression.

"Greetings, Flandre and Koishi, yes? What can I do you for?"

Koishi spoke up for the two of them, "Kyouko says you're good at listening to people, and Flanny needs to talk to you about stuff!" It was a vague explanation, but one that would suffice.

Mamizou scratched her ear for a moment and adjusted her glasses a bit before answering. "I suppose if you have something you want to get off your chest, I could listen to your problems for a bit." Mamizou said with a smile, "Besides, I could use a bit of a break from managing the funds around here; it gets a bit tedious if one does it for too long…" Mamizou cracked her door all the way open, it opened with a long creaking noise. "Come on in, make yourself comfortable."

Flandre entered the room silently, feeling a bit nervous about telling someone she had only met a few hours ago about her troubles. Koishi began to follow after her, but was stopped by Mamizou.

"Huh? I'm with Flanny, let me in!"

"I think she'd prefer it if you waited outside, personal issues and all that." Mamizou explained.

Koishi wouldn't be swayed so easily though, "Nonsense, I'll stay by Flanny's side until the very end! That's what friends do!" Koishi said, pouting at Mamizou.

"Hmmmm, What's that…? I think Kyouko's calling for you, I think she said something about wanting to share some sweets with you…?"

"Sweets!? I'll be right there Kyouko!" Koishi cried as she rocketed down the halls at speeds Flandre had never seen from the satori before, in the blink of an eye she was gone, leaving the tanuki and vampire alone. The satori had unwittingly been tricked.

"Quite the friend you have there." Mamizou commented before quietly closing the door.

"Thanks for that…She can be a bit…eccentric." Flandre said gratefully as she took a seat on a mat that lied on the room's floor. Mamizou's room was quite decorated; it looked like the complete opposite of the room that Flandre had slept in the night before.

The room was peppered with many mementos and foreign looking decoration and furniture. Her wall desk also had several pictures of herself with many friends and family, she looked happy in every one of them. Her walls had several hides of animals hanging from them; they looked like the skins of foxes.

Mamizou plopped down onto the mat across from Flandre; she pushed a few notepads and pencils away from the area and turned her focus to the vampire.

"So, what would you like to talk about now?" Mamizou asked with a kind smile, Flandre remained silent as she fidgeted around a bit uncomfortably. "Don't worry, everything you say will be completely confidential, no one will hear a word of it. This is just between you and me, so please speak your mind."

Flandre mustered up all of her courage as she began to share her problems with the tanuki, taking a deep breath, "Well…"

* * *

Remilia walked slowly to the back of the Hakurei shrine, where the three fairies had said that the shrine's miko was at the moment. Just as they had said, the Hakurei shrine-maiden was there, lazily lounging about on the shrine's porch. She was using her arms as a pillow as she rested without a care in the world.

"Shouldn't you be taking better care of your shrine, miss shrine maiden?" Remilia asked sarcastically as she approached her.

Reimu popped one of her eyes open, looking at Remilia from the corner of her eye before closing it again. "Oh, it's just the vampire. I thought you were the hermit for a second there…"

Reimu, the Hakurei shrine-maiden and one of Gensokyo's famous incident solvers was wearing her usual miko get-up. Wearing a red dress with a yellow ribbon around her collar, her arms were covered in a pair of detached sleeves and a large red bow tied in her hair.

Her expression was one of indifference, mixed with a bit of annoyance as Remilia sat down next to her. "What do you want Remilia? Don't you usually wait until night to bother me?" Reimu asked, not even bothering to move a muscle when addressing her guest.

"I need to talk to you about something."

"I don't have time to listen to everyone else's problems… I have enough of my own to deal with, so come back later…" Reimu groaned.

Remilia sighed as she dug through her dress and pulled out five-thousand yen, handing it to the shrine maiden. Reimu's eyes lit up with life at the sight of the money, quickly snatching it away from Remilia as she stared at it as if to check if the money were real or not. "Alright, what do you want to talk about Remilia?" Reimu asked as she began counting the money. Remilia almost swore that she began drooling over the sight of it; the shrine-maiden must have been in dire straits to be this happy over receiving a donation, even if it was from a youkai.

"It's about my sister…" Remilia began.

"What about her?" Reimu interrupted.

"I wanted to talk about some recent problems concerning her…"

"You mean how she escaped from the mansion and is now wandering around free as a bird and that you're holding a bounty on her head?"

"Yes, I see you've been keeping up with the news lately. I'm surprised you haven't gone off to collect the bounty to be honest, considering your shrine's…financial issues." Remilia said, trying to put Reimu's money problems as delicately as possible.

"Well believe me, I've considered it. But seeing as she almost beat me and Marisa together, I gave up on that thought…A shame too…I could do so much with that money…" Reimu sighed sadly.

"Why not just team up with Marisa then? Surely you could defeat her then and split the reward..." Remilia suggested.

"Sure, I could do that, but we barely beat her the first time even when working together…besides Marisa's a notorious thief, remember? She'd probably steal my share of the money and waste it all in one day." Reimu said nonchalantly, "Besides, I'm pretty sure she's friends with the little lunatic…So unless that sister of yours starts blowing Gensokyo up, I'm not even gonna bother worrying about it."

"That's a shame…I was hoping at least one of you would have taken up the offer…" Remilia said with slight disappointment on her face, "But enough of that, I wanted to talk about my sister, not the bounty."

"Go on…"

"Do you…Do you think that I'm handling the situation the right way?" Remilia asked, "I mean, putting a bounty on her and all."

Reimu remained silent, with both of her eyes shut. Remilia was beginning to grow impatient with the shrine maiden's lack of concern.

"Well…say something!"

"Hey, I was asked to listen, not give advice. I'm not any good at giving advice to others, alright?" Reimu answered impatiently, "Anything else you want to talk about and get off your chest?"

Remilia sighed in utter disappointment, "No…Just forget I asked." Remilia said quietly as she stared at the shrine's pond. Her eyes were filled with disappointment, talking to Reimu was like talking to a rock for all the help she gave her.

Reimu glanced over at Remilia quietly, with a look of mild concern growing on her face. Reimu sighed and got up from the porch, wiping the wrinkles out of her dress before approaching the vampire. "Look, I don't know if you're handling this situation the way you should be. Heck, I don't even know if I'm doing my job as the Hakurei shrine maiden right. But…If you need to talk about anything…Then I guess you can come to me about it…" Reimu said almost reluctantly.

Remilia grew a small smile, "Thank you Reimu…I…appreciate it."

"Yeah, yeah…Whatever. Just don't spread news that I'm some sort of therapist or something, I don't want a bunch of damn youkai showing up on my shrine wanting to talk about their feelings."

"I'll be sure to keep my lips sealed then." Remilia said with a light laugh.

"Good, now you want some tea?" Reimu offered, which was somewhat out of character for her to do. She was always reluctant to spare any of her scarce provisions for anyone but herself.

"I suppose I could go for a cup...It's been a while since I've had some of your tea." Remilia said as the two of them entered the shrine.

* * *

"I see…So you're having some family issues lately?" Mamizou asked with concern, fidgeting a bit with her glasses as she seemed to contemplate the situation. "Why not tell me a bit about your sister then?"

"Well…Big sister…She's the greatest person I know. She's super smart...nice…and she's really tough! She's beaten up a lot of people before!" Flandre said, a small smile growing on her face. "I'm just scared…I'm afraid she hates me now for running away from home with Meiling…" Flandre started staring down at the floor sadly; her smile disappeared as quickly as it had appeared on her face.

"Hmmmmmm…Well let me tell you something about family." Mamizou said, Flandre looked up to the tanuki as she continued, "Family always looks out for one another, and has their family's best interest in mind. Now, I can't say for certain that your sister is correct about everything, and truly has your best interest in mind, but I do know this, your sister is just worried for you." Mamizou said with a smile. "It's only natural for the older siblings to protect and worry for their younger sisters. I'm sure that once you return to her side, you'll have shown her that you can handle yourself just fine out in the world and that you're no longer a child, and that she no longer has to be worried about you. Does this make sense to you?"

Flandre nodded happily in response, "Uh-huh…I feel a lot better now…Thanks Granny Mamy." Flandre said, wiping a few tears out of her eyes as she spoke before giving the tanuki a hug in thanks.

At first Mamizou was taken aback by the gesture, but quickly recovered and returned the embrace cheerfully. "It's not a problem, if you ever need an ear to listen, just call upon me. It's nice to have a break from my work once in a while." Mamizou said with a happy grin.

"Alright! Thanks again Granny Mamy!" Flandre said before exiting the room, leaving Mamizou to go find Koishi.

"…Granny Mamy? …Do I really appear to be that old…?" Mamizou asked herself worriedly as she looked at her reflection in a mirror. "…Maybe I should ask Byakuren how she keeps herself looking so young…"

* * *

Flandre quickly walked through the halls of the temple in search of Koishi. Her search took her to the mess hall, where there was a small stage placed at one end of the room with many rows of chairs sitting in front of it. There was also a large banner reading, 'Choujuu Gigako' that hung from above the stage.

Flandre didn't have time to contemplate why the mess hall had gone over such drastic changes since this morning, as she spotted Koishi nearby. She was sitting on one of the tabletops in the room with a disappointed frown on her face, resting her face in the palm of her hand.

"I can't believe Kyouko didn't have any sweets…how could she raise my hopes like that only to crush them…? How rude…" Koishi mumbled to herself as she sulked on the table. She seemed to be too distracted in her depressed state that she didn't notice Flandre taking a seat next to her.

"Something wrong Koishi?" Flandre asked, catching the satori's attention.

Koishi turned toward her friend and sighed sadly. "Kyouko didn't have any sweets...and I missed Flanny's private time with Mamy…" Koishi said with disappointment dripping from each and every word.

"It's alright Koi-Koi," Flandre said as she began digging in her pockets for something. She took out a small circular piece of chocolate that as wrapped in a red wrapper, holding it out to Koishi. "Here, you can have it."

"R-Really!?" Koishi asked in disbelief, as she stared at the sweet as if it were some sort of priceless treasure. Koishi hesitantly took the sweet from Flandre's hand and undid the wrapping and stared at the piece of chocolate for a bit.

Then she unexpectedly broke it into two pieces and handed one of the pieces to Flandre. "Here, have some." Koishi said plainly as she waited for Flandre to take it.

"Are you sure? You can have it if you want; I'm not that hungry anyways."

Koishi nodded, "Everything tastes better when you share it with others! Or at least that's what big sister told me once."

Flandre gladly took the sweet from Koishi, as they both tossed their halves into their mouths happily. Flandre was beginning to think that what Koishi said had some truth behind it, maybe sharing did make things taste better, she'd have to ask Meiling about it later to see if it were true or not.

As the two were enjoying their sweets, the two noticed that Kyouko had entered the room, with a great big smile on her face as always. Except she was in a completely different outfit than her usual dress, instead she was wearing a completely black leather one, along with a pair of knee-high black stockings. Her eyes were covered by a pair of sunglasses, and she had a black collar around her neck.

"Hey guys! What's going on?" Kyouko greeted as she sat down next to them.

Koishi just silently glared at her for a bit before turning away from her with a grunt. "Sorry about that…Koishi thought you were going to be giving her some sweets…" Flandre apologized for Koishi's behavior.

"Huh? Why? I don't have any sweets right now; I only get them as gifts during holidays…"

"Um…Never mind, it's a long story." Flandre said, "So what's up with the costume?"

"Oh this?" Kyouko asked as she looked down at herself, "It's my stage outfit! My band's gonna play tonight right here at the temple, remember?" Kyouko asked with a grin as she glimpsed at the stage with pride.

"Oh yeah! I've never been to a concert before…"

"Really? Then I'm honored that my band will be playing at your first concert!" Kyouko said cheerfully. "We'll have to play twice as hard as we usually do now!"

"Hey, Kyouko! We need to do some sound checks real quick! Come on!" a familiar voice called. It was Mystia from the night before, or at least it looked like the night-sparrow.

She was wearing an odd looking helmet and a pair of goofy looking sunglasses. Her dress, rather than being brown like from the night before, was instead black like Kyouko's. She also wore a pair of black leather boots and held a guitar in her hands. It was almost like looking at a completely different person from the night before.

"Oh hey guys, looks like you found the temple alright." Mystia greeted as she walked up to the three of them.

"You're in a band, and you're a food-stand owner!?" Koishi asked in surprise. She didn't seem to be angry with Kyouko any longer, that or she had forgotten all about her.

"Yep." Mystia confirmed, "Being in a band makes it easier for people to hear my singing, one day me and Kyouko will be world famous musicians! But for now, we're stuck with small gigs…Anyways, we gotta go Kyouko. Y'know, gotta check the sound and all that? The concert's in less than an hour now!"

"Oh right, sorry! I'll be right there!" Kyouko apologized, "Well I gotta go, I hope you'll come to see our performance! Bye!" and with that the yamabiko and night-sparrow left the two to go prepare for their big concert, leaving the pair of Flandre and Koishi to relax as they waited for the concert to begin.

* * *

**A/N: Well this chapter came out a bit faster than I had predicted it would...I might have underestimated myself a bit...Anyways, nothing extraordinarily special happened in this chapter, just more of a chapter to help develop some of the characters personalities and such. Though it somewhat feels like Kyouko stole the stage when it comes down to appearances so far in the Myouren temple group...Though that might just be because she's my favorite character from TD.**

**Though despite the short amount of screen time for everyone else besides Kyouko and Mamizou, I feel pretty good about how this chapter went. Especially the scene with Reimu...That scene practically wrote itself. Though if everyone's favorite down-in-the-dumps shrine-maiden will make any more appearances in this story is still undecided.  
**

**My only real problem with this chapter is how I ended it, though it was mostly due to a total lack of ideas on how to end this chapter honestly. So I apologize for the crap ending, my bad.  
**

**To address my latest review for this story...Crazy Scion: I admittedly want the story to be like that, I want to keep people unsure of how everything will end up until the very end. Thank you for your review, I really appreciate it!  
**

**Well, this Author's note is beginning to become longer than it should, so I'll end it now. All reviews and views are deeply appreciated! Until the next chapter, peace!  
**


	15. Chapter 15: The grave umbrella

The performance put on by Choujuu Gigako was an interesting one to say the least. The aspiring pair of musicians Kyouko and Mystia was surprisingly not half bad. The two actually managed to fill out quite a few seats in the temple and had a good sized audience. Most of the temple had come to give their support to the two of them, though most of the audience seemed to be reluctant to come to their show at first.

But before the night had ended, almost everyone was cheering Kyouko and Mystia on. Though their seemingly biggest fan of the night was the blonde woman Flandre and Koishi had met earlier that day, who they later found out, was Shou Toramaru. She was banging her head vigorously to almost all of their songs, her mouse companion however didn't seem to appreciate punk rock genre as much as she did, as she covered her ears with her hands the entire show in an attempt to block out the sound of their playing.

Even Byakuren seemed to enjoy the performance, as she had a warm smile on her face for the entire show. That or she was great at hiding her displeasure with their music. The next day everything went back to normal, with the stage and decorations nowhere in sight by morning time.

Flandre sat by herself in the temple's courtyard, still half-asleep. She was exhausted from last night's concert, but her sleep was restless and she couldn't find herself drifting off into sleep. Meiling and Koishi however, didn't seem to share her problem, and were resting peacefully in their rooms, along with many of the other temple residents. Flandre finally decided on waiting outside until one of her companions finally woke up and joined her, though sadly for her that didn't appear to be happening anytime soon.

Though as time passed by, to Flandre's surprise, found Kyouko walking out from the temple, with her usual beaming smile still on her face. She didn't even show the slightest bit of fatigue, an impressive feat considering how late she was up the night before playing with her Mystia. In her hands she carried her usual broom, and strangely enough a bowl of steaming porridge.

Flandre watched her idly as Kyouko walked passed her while humming a cheerful tune. She didn't seem to notice Flandre sitting there, as she kept on going about her business without even a single glance at the vampire. Flandre continued to watch Kyouko with an interested expression as the yamabiko wandered off towards the back of the temple.

"Where's she going?" Flandre asked herself, with her eyes focused on Kyouko as she continued on her way merrily.

Flandre found herself following her out of curiosity and boredom, sneaking behind Kyouko as she kept going about her business, completely oblivious that Flandre was following her every move. Before long, Flandre followed Kyouko into the temple's large cemetery, where there were several tomb-stones scattered about the area in orderly fashioned rows.

Many of the tomb-stones were in good condition and had flowers placed in front of them, other tombs however weren't so lucky, with some of them being in such bad condition that the inscriptions on them couldn't be made out; leaving the identity of the one buried there a mystery.

Flandre suddenly came up with a devious idea for a prank from looking around the eerily quiet cemetery. A mischievous smile grew on her face as she hid behind a grave-marker, she would scare the priest-in-training silly when she least expected it. Flandre didn't prank others often, but she couldn't pass down this perfectly good opportunity at some fun at Kyouko's expense.

The prank was quickly forgotten though, as Flandre noticed Kyouko carefully placing the bowl of porridge at the foot of a grave. Kyouko then began to do what she did best, sweeping. She quickly dusted off the grave with her trusty broom while humming a quiet melody. Flandre simply observed Kyouko with curiosity as she stayed out of sight behind the tombstone she was situated at.

"Boo." A childish voice said softly, causing Kyouko to look up from her work in mild surprise.

Sitting on the very tombstone that Kyouko was dusting off was a small girl, looking to be about the same height as Kyouko. Her hair was short, only reaching down to her shoulders; it was a shade of light-blue, the same color as the dress she wore. Her eyes were oddly colored, with one being just as blue as her hair and dress, and the other being as red as Flandre's. She was shaded by a large purple umbrella that had an odd design on it, it had one eye with a red pupil, and strangest of all, a large tongue hanging out of its large mouth.

"Huh? Oh Kogasa! Good morning! I didn't think you'd be up yet." Kyouko greeted with a friendly smile.

"Morning. I saw your concert last night, you were pretty good." Kogasa replied.

"Oh thank you! I'm glad you thought so!" Kyouko said cheerfully as she finished her sweeping and picked up the bowl of porridge, "Here, I brought this for you!" she said as she held the bowl out to the karakasa.

Kogasa hesitated for a moment before accepting the bowl, "Thanks! But won't your friends be mad that you're giving me their food?" she asked as began to take a spoonful of the porridge.

"Nah, Sister Byakuren says that giving to those in need is important! I'm sure she won't mind if I gave you some food, in fact she often says she worries about your health and wishes you'd come live in the temple instead of out here in the graveyard all by yourself. I mean it must get pretty lonely out here…plus it's really creepy out here…" Kyouko said as she looked around cautiously, as if she expected to be ambushed at any moment.

Kogasa giggled lightly, "You know I can't leave the cemetery…but thanks anyways…Besides, it's not too bad out here. It's so eerie and creepy…It's the perfect spot to scare people in! Plus it's nice and safe and away from that green-haired shrine-maiden…" Kogasa felt a shiver go done her spine as she remembered her defeats at the mountain shrine-maiden's hands. Disturbingly enough was that the wind priestess seemed to enjoy every moment of beating the karakasa to a pulp in their danmaku duels. The girl's cruel grin was still fresh in her mind; Kogasa prayed she'd never encounter that crazy lunatic of a girl again. "Besides, it's not too lonely out here. Yoshika and Nue come by, and there's a kasha that drops by sometimes too…"

"Yoshika? That zombie girl? I thought she scares you."

"She didn't scare me! She just startled me is all…" Kogasa denied as she puffed out her cheeks, causing Kyouko to laugh. "Besides she isn't that bad once you get to know her actually, I usually see her in the human village."

"Huh…Well I'm glad you're making friends!" Kyouko said happily, she took a glance at the sky for a moment, "Well I had better go back to the temple before everyone else wakes up. Take care Kogasa." Kyouko said somewhat sadly as she bid her friend good-bye.

Kogasa frowned sadly at her departure, "Yeah…I will, hope you drop by again soon." She gave her friend a wave good-bye as she left her by herself amongst the graves once again.

Meanwhile Flandre still remained undetected by either of the girls, as she watched Kyouko pass by without noticing her presence. Flandre gave the odd karakasa one last glance before following the yamabiko's lead and returning to the temple.

"Huh…I wonder what's up with that umbrella girl…"

Flandre jumped in surprise and turned around, only to find what many of the temple's residents have been calling 'Flandre's shadow', Koishi. She looked over Flandre's shoulder at the light-blue haired girl with curiosity. Strangely enough Flandre hadn't noticed the girl approach her, almost as if she popped out of thin air.

"Koishi, what're you doing here?" Flandre asked her strange companion.

Koishi turned her attention away from the lone karakasa and put on one of her usual cheerful smiles, "Flan-chan wasn't in her room, so I decided to look for you!" she answered happily.

Flandre was a little confused on how the satori managed to track her down, especially without any knowledge of where she had ran off to. But she decided to just drop the subject and leave it at that.

"Hey Flanny, let's go get some breakfast! I'm hungry." Koishi said as she rubbed her stomach to emphasize her point.

"Alright Koi-koi, I'm getting pretty hungry myself…Plus maybe China'll be up." Flandre replied as she let Koishi take her by the hand as they walked back to the temple.

Flandre took one last glance at the odd blue-haired girl as she silently sat on top of the gravestone before she finally faded from sight as the pair entered the temple.

Later in the day, Flandre still found that the odd umbrella girl was still where she saw her last; still sitting on the same grave she was sitting on that very morning. Flandre began to wonder about the strange umbrella girl she saw Kyouko with earlier, something about her seemed…strange to her. She only saw the girl leave once the cemetery once that day, but she returned within the hour, which served to make Flandre even more curious about the girl. So Flandre decided to investigate this peculiar girl further.

She decided to question Shou about the girl, since she seemed to know quite a bit about the individuals living at the temple. Koishi, as usual decided to tag along with her, though she didn't mind the company one bit despite her odd quirks.

The two found Shou out in the courtyard greeting visitors to the temple along with her mouse friend. Surprisingly enough, a few humans even came to the temple, despite the large quantity of youkai at the temple.

"Hmmmm, quite a busy day, wouldn't you say Nazirin?" Shou said to her companion.

"Sure is…Little surprised that these meat-sacks are showing up though…I mean this is a youkai temple…" Nazirin replied as she leaned against the temple's walls.

"You shouldn't be referring to our human guests as meat-sacks, Naz, you'll scare them off." Shou chastised.

"Yeah, yeah…Whatever…" Nazirin shrugged off nonchalantly as she gazed at the sky. It was nice and warm out, without a cloud in sight, it was a perfect day to be outdoors.

"Still, I share the sentiment, it is surprising to see so many humans here…especially with the human saint running around and sputtering off her nonsense…"

"Right…that Toyosatomimi lady… she's gonna be trouble with her riling everyone up and all…I wonder if that friend of Nue's will actually be any help against her…I mean she seems to be real old…wouldn't be surprised if she busted her hip or something while she's trying to 'help' us."

"Knock it off Naz; don't be insulting our ally behind her back, Mamizou has been a great asset to the temple since she arrived in Gensokyo." Shou said with evident irritation in her voice.

"Yeah, yeah…sorry boss…"

"Goodness Naz…Sometimes I can't believe such a tiny little thing like you can have such a big mouth…"

"And sometimes I can't believe the avatar of bishamonten lost a priceless artifact…" Nazirin muttered under her breath.

"I didn't lose the pagoda, I simply misplaced it!" Shou argued.

"Whatever you say boss…You're just lucky you got me to clean up your messes." Nazirin said as a cheeky grin grew on her face.

"Shut your mouth you little-Oh hello you two…you need something?" Shou said sheepishly as she noticed the pair of Flandre and Koishi standing behind her.

"Yeah, do you know anything about that umbrella girl in the graveyard?" Koishi asked before Flandre even had the opportunity to open her mouth.

"Her? She's an odd one…no matter how many times Byakuren offers her a room in the temple, she always declines…" Shou trailed off as she began to think more about the odd-ball girl that lived in what was essentially their backyard. "That's all I really know about her…You know anything Naz?"

Nazirin's grin grew a little as she replied, "Why yes I do, that umbrella girl's name is Kogasa Tatara. She began to occupy the graveyard sometime before that Shrine-maiden and three of her friends trampled through our temple during that divine spirit incident with those hermits. I've talked to her a few times while I was looking for some treasure in the graveyard to help with our budget here, though she never told me why she picked a graveyard of all things to settle down in…That's all I know about her…Though Kyouko might know more about her, I've seen her sneak food in to the cemetery for her a few times."

"Huh…Okay…Thanks Miss Mouse." Flandre said gratefully, "Let's go find Kyouko Koishi!"

"Okey-dokey!" Koishi said happily as she followed after Flandre.

"Anytime kiddies, you can ask the great disciple of bishamonten anything you please!" Nazirin called back to them.

Shou shook her head in disapproval and gave a big sigh before saying, "You know Nazirin, I can't tell what's bigger, your mouth or that bloated ego of yours…"

"Awww shut up you dumb cat!"

Flandre and Koishi began their search the temple's resident yamabiko at Nazirin's suggestion. Soon after their search began Flandre found out that Koishi had her own ways of tracking others down, which consisted of barging into rooms without knocking, and yelling Kyouko's name loudly throughout the temple. Despite Koishi's tactics on finding people being very loud and rude, it was also very effective, as Kyouko shouted an enthusiastic 'yahoo' in response to Koishi's screaming, making finding her easy enough.

"Huh, Kogasa? What about her?" Kyouko said after being questioned about the mysterious girl.

"You know why she just sits in that graveyard all day? She sits there like a statue all day! She's like China when she falls asleep!" Flandre asked.

"Well…To be honest…I really don't know." Kyouko replied sadly, "She never told me why she lives there, and when I asked she always frowns at me…"

"Ugh…That mouse girl lied to us…Kyouko wasn't any help at all!" Koishi cried, stomping her feet on the ground in a bout of frustration. As Koishi threw her tantrum, Flandre noticed that her third eyes kept twitching, just like when the two had first met.

"I'm s-sorry…P-Please calm down…You're kind of freaking me out…" Kyouko pleaded as she backed off from the angered satori cautiously. "W-Why not just ask her yourself? Maybe she'll tell you…"

Kyouko's suggestion seemed to knock Koishi out of her tantrum as her eyes seemingly glowed with happiness from the suggestion, "Of course! The mouse girl wasn't lying! Kyouko was helpful!" she chirped happily. Kyouko and Flandre just blankly stared at Koishi in disbelief at the sudden change in her mood.

"Thanks for the help Kyouko, we'll do that. See ya later!" Flandre said, waving to Kyouko as she left with Koishi in tow.

"Oh, no problem! See ya guys later!" Kyouko called back to them before she resumed her usual activity of sweeping the temple's halls as she hummed a cheerful tune.

"You know Flanny now that I think about it…Wouldn't it have been easier to ask the umbrella girl directly instead of asking others about her?" Koishi asked as she jumped from tombstone to tombstone gracefully, making her landings without a single flaw in her form. It was quite an impressive display.

"Ummm…Maybe?" Flandre replied sheepishly as she watched Koishi's acrobatics.

"Oh… Just making sure." Koishi said as she hopped off one of the gravestones, "Say, where's China? I haven't seen her in a while…"

"Miss Ichirin said that Mr. Cloud said that she was taking a nap, they said she was too tired out from yesterday…I kinda think she's just being lazy though."

"Oh…Yeah, China is kinda lazy…Oh we're here!"

Just as Koishi had said, they had reached the grave that Kogasa was currently using as a seat. She sat there silently, staring at them as she watched them approach her. She wore a neutral expression, not one of malice or good intention. Though despite her indifferent expression, her eggplant colored umbrella made her look quite intimidating, with it's one red eye seemingly staring the pair down as it shaded it's holder and the grave she sat on from the sun completely.

"Hello." She greeted in a quiet voice, "Are you visiting a loved one's grave today?" she asked.

"Huh? No. Nothing like that." Flandre answered, "We're here to talk to you."

"Me?" Kogasa asked in surprise, "Why?"

This time Koishi spoke up, clearing her throat before speaking. "Me and Flanny here wanna know why you sit in this creepy graveyard all day!" she shouted as she pointed at her accusingly.

Kogasa looked a bit taken aback by the sudden and unexpected question. She blinked several time as she regained her composure before replying with a simple, "Huh?"

"Tell us!" Koishi urged as she approached the karakasa, "If you have nothing to hide, then you have nothing to fear!"

Kogasa's neutral expression shifted into a frown before saying, "Why do you wanna know?"

"Because we're-"

"We'll be the one asking the questions here!" Koishi exclaimed, cutting off whatever Flandre was going to say.

Kogasa silently glared at the two of them, if looks could kill, the pair of them would most certainly be joining the deceased in this graveyard. "No."

"Huh?" Koishi asked as if she didn't hear her correctly, "What do you mean?"

"I mean it's none of your business! Now leave me alone!" Kogasa shouted at the satori angrily, her face twisted in anger as she stared down the two of them.

"Hey, that wasn't very nice you…you…BIG BULLY!" Koishi screamed back. As she did, her third eye once again began to twitch oddly, as if it couldn't decide whether to remain closed or opened. The satori looked like she'd jump at the karakasa and pummel her to a bloody pulp at this rate.

Fortunately for Kogasa, Flandre stepped in. She put a hand to her enraged friend's shoulder and said calmly, "It's alright Koi-Koi, calm down…Let's just go back inside and talk to Kyouko…"

Koishi didn't seem to calm down initially, as her breath was heavy and her face was red with anger. "Um…We can also have some sweets too; I still have some left over!" Flandre said in a last attempt to appease her friend's anger.

The notion of treats seemed to soothe Koishi's anger, as her face went back to its normal shade and her breathing became less heavy. "Really?" she asked finally after calming down a bit from her earlier outrage.

"Of course! I got some sweets in my room; we can share some and go play with Kyouko!" Flandre said happily.

"Yay! Then let's go!" Koishi giggled happily as she began to skip merrily to the temple. Her sudden changes in mood left Flandre slightly surprised, but she had begun to get used to Koishi's random mood changes.

Flandre silently followed her now happy friend back to the temple, without once turning back to take a look at Koagasa, who was still staring daggers at the pair as they left.

"Hmph…Bullies…" Kogasa grumbled under her breath as soon as the pair was out of earshot.

"Where are they…? Why must life be so difficult Eirin…?" Kaguya asked as her head dropped onto the counter of the food stand she and her party had stopped to rest at.

The three's search for their elusive quarry hasn't gone well, it's been three days since they began their hunt, and since their first encounter with the girl and her red-haired lackey, she seemingly disappeared from the face of Gensokyo without a trace.

"Please calm down princess…we'll find them, and once we do, we'll turn their heads in for the bounty. It's just a matter of time before they show themselves…" Eirin said reassuringly, even though her patience with this hunt has also begun to wear thin.

This diversion after all, was taking time out of time she could be using to create new medical breakthroughs. Plus she wasn't entirely comfortable leaving Eientei under Tewi's command in their absence, who knows what sort of mischief might occur by leaving the prankster unsupervised?

"Master, are you sure this bounty is really worth the trouble? I mean isn't there some other way we could raise the money to pay off Princess Kaguya's outside world possessions?" Reisen asked quietly, avoiding eye contact with her teacher.

"It certainly is Udonge. The reward money was recently increased to a much greater sum, it would be enough to pay off any debts caused by the princess' recent…purchases and then some." Eirin explained simply without even bothering to take a glance at her pupil.

"But still…Couldn't we just have Tewi work some of her magic to make some money? I mean, she is a sign of fortune to humans…" Reisen suggested timidly.

Eirin sighed in an irritable tone as she rubbed her temples in annoyance before replying, "That would take time, Udonge. That's something we don't have, Tewi can't just spring good luck upon us and expect that money will rain from the sky. The most her luckiness will get us is some spare change. We need to pay off these debts as soon as possible, do you understand?" Eirin asked.

"Y-Yes master…" Reisen answered sadly.

"Good."

"Ugh…I hate this! Where the heck is that dumb girl and that red headed knave!? COME OUT COME OUT WHEREVER YOU ARE YOU BLOODY COWARDS!" Kaguya screamed in frustration, causing a few villagers to stare at her and her two companions with odd looks. "I want to go home so badly…Why can't that Flandre girl just come out so we can get the money and go home…?" Kaguya mumbled sadly as Eirin comforted her.

"You guys are looking for Flandre?" the stand-keeper asked curiously as she wiped a glass dry with a clean rag, uttering her first words since the three arrived at her humble food stand.

"Yes, indeed we are. Would you happen to have any information on her whereabouts?" Eirin asked the stand-owner in a professional tone, one she reserved only to use on patients who visited her clinic.

"Yeah, sure I do." The stand-keeper replied simply.

"You do!? Tell us right now you little peasant or I'll roast you on an open fire!" Kaguya snapped.

"Princess, please let me handle this…" Eirin interrupted hastily. Kaguya conceded to Eirin's request and went silent, muttering something under breath angrily. "Please forgive my companion's outburst, we have been searching for this girl for a long time and are tired and frustrated. If you would please impart to us any information we could use to find the one we're searching for, that would be greatly appreciated."

The stand-owner didn't appear to be offended by Kaguya's earlier threat, as she willingly informed them of what she knew, "Last I saw she was at Myouren temple, you know, that temple run by that Byakuren lady? I played there a few days ago with my band and I saw her." she said informatively.

"Myouren temple then? That's not too far off from here; it would seem our search has come to an end princess." Eirin said as a twisted smile grew on her face.

"Yes! Finally! This time I'll put that red-headed knave in her place!" Kaguya said happily as she hopped out of her seat.

"Say why do you want to find Flandre so bad anyways?" the stand-keeper asked curiously with a concerned frown on her face.

"Oh, her older sister wishes for her to return home before she injures herself, we're just working upon her behalf, no need to worry." Eirin said with a warm-hearted smile on her face as she spoke.

The stand-keeper seemed to believe the story, as her face quickly shifted into a smile. "Well alright, tell her Mystia said 'hey' once you see her then."

"I'll be sure to impart the message." Eirin said, "Udonge come, it is time to go." She ordered.

"Y-Yes master…"

Mystia watched as the three left her stand silently before yelling to them, "What, no tip? I'm running a business here you know!" the three either didn't hear her, or didn't pay her any mind, as they didn't bother to respond. "Hmph…Cheapskates…didn't even get a thank you…" Mystia grumbled to herself as she turned her attention back to cleaning her dishes.


	16. Chapter 16: Resolve

Guarding the gates to the temple wasn't an exceptionally exciting job, especially to one who has done many exciting things in her lifetime, but Murasa remained at the gates, ready to greet visitors as they visited the temple at Byakuren's request. If anyone else had asked her to perform such a boring and thankless task, she would have replied with a simple, "Screw that." But she couldn't refuse Byakuren, not after all that the monk had done for her in the past. So there she remained, bored out of her skull.

"Oi…What a boring day…" Murasa muttered to herself as she glanced at the sky for a moment. There was hardly any visitors at the temple, all of the ones from earlier had left and gone home. The once sunny day had also turned into a dark and cloudy one, which may have contributed to the temple's lack of visitors at the moment. "At least Shou and Nazirin got visitors to actually greet…it's as quiet as a grave round' here."

Murasa turned her attention back to the temple's path, and to her surprise she actually saw some visitors. She squinted and found not one but three visitors walking towards the temple. As they came near, Murasa could make out their features more clearly.

One of the visitors had long black hair and wore a pink long sleeved shirt with a long red skirt that covered her legs completely. Another had long grey hair that was tied into one large braid and wore a medic's cap. The third visitor had a pair of white rabbit ears coming out of her head, and wore a black business suit. She looked like she was worried about something. Something about these visitors was fishy…

Despite the voice in her head that was telling Murasa that these visitors were bad news, she ignored it and did her job. "Welcome to Myouren temple, enjoy your stay." She said nonchalantly as they approached her. Murasa waited for the three to pass by without a response, but they surprisingly stopped in their tracks by the ghost.

"You need somethin' or what? I'm busy here." which was an obvious lie, one glance at the nearly empty temple grounds would be enough to tell.

The one with the long flowing black hair didn't seem to take kindly to Murasa's manners, "What did you say!? How dare you address me like that! I ought to-!"

"Princess, please let me handle this…" the one with the grey hair interrupted, the way she said it made it sound like she had to 'handle' a lot of things for her companion.

The black haired woman conceded and became silent, but that didn't stop her from glaring at the spirit with great anger in her eyes. Murasa didn't pay her any mind, it wasn't the first time she had angered someone with her manners, and it wouldn't be the last.

"Excuse me Miss…?" the grey haired woman said, waiting for Murasa to give her name.

"That's captain to you, Captain Minamitsu Murasa." She said.

"Very well then…'captain…'" the grey haired woman said impatiently, "We're looking for someone, she's a young looking youkai girl, wearing a red dress, blonde hair, and an unusual pair of wings, have you seen anyone matching this description? We were told that she is at this temple."

Murasa immediately recognized the lady's description as that Flandre-what's-her-name-girl. She hasn't spoken or seen much of the girl since she arrived at the temple. As far as she was concerned, the girl was just another one of Byakuren's charity cases.

"Yeah, there's some Flandre girl staying here if that's who you're looking for."

"Excellent, would you happen to know where she is right now?" the woman asked calmly.

"Aye saw her go into the cemetery out back not too long ago. She should still be-"

"Ah, the cemetery, let's hurry before she escapes from our grasps again. Come Udonge!" The grey haired woman interrupted, she began to run towards the temple with haste.

"Yes! Finally! This hunt has been wearing down my patience!" the long black –haired girl cheered as she ran after her grey-haired cohort.

"Hey! No one interrupts Captain Minamitsu Murasa mid-sentence! You hear me!? No one!" Murasa yelled at the grey-haired woman, but it was no use as she had already disappeared along with her black-haired friend.

Murasa groaned to herself, "Bitch is lucky that there isn't any water nearby, or I'd drown her sorry ass…" after a few moments of muttering curses under her breath Murasa noticed that the rabbit-girl was still there.

She looked indecisive about following after her companions or not. She finally seemed to decide to go after the pair as she ran after them in silence. "Hmph…What was up with those guys anyways? Dumb bitch's no better than Toyosatomimi…"

"What're you so flustered about Minamitsu?" a cheeky response came.

Murasa looked up towards the voice, she found Nue sitting on top of the temple's gates, with a smug grin planted on her face. "Oh, it's just you." Murasa replied nonchalantly, "Stop calling me that Nue, its Captain Murasa, you got that?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Nue replied uncaringly. "So having fun playing greeting girl?" Nue snickered.

"Not today, Houjuu." Murasa growled, "Go bother someone else."

"Oh come on Murasa…It's so boring around here…at least play along a little…"

"No Houjuu, now get out my sight before I shove an anchor up your-Hey you! Kid!" Murasa shouted once she noticed the pair of Flandre and Koishi walking by. The two of them seemed to be enjoying some sweets together as walked by without a care in the world until they noticed the ghost captain yelling at them.

"Oh hey Cap'n Murasa…Did you want some sweets too?" Flandre asked the ghost as she tossed another piece of candy in her mouth, licking her lips in enjoyment.

"Wha-? No! I don't want your candy! I wanted to talk to you about your friends from earlier!" Murasa yelled in frustration.

"Who me?" Koishi asked curiously, as she swallowed another sweet with evident pleasure.

"No! Gah…I'm talkin' about that grey-haired crone and her two buddies!" Murasa yelled impatiently, "That snob was asking about you, she a friend of yours or somethin'? If she is, talk some damn sense into her before I beat it into her!"

"Grey-haired lady?" Flandre asked, "I don't have any friends with grey hair besides Koi-Koi."

"Then what in the blazes did they want with you? They were definitely looking for ya…I think her black-haired friend called it a hunt maybe…all I know is that something besides their lack of respect doesn't agree with me." Murasa asked as she began to think about the three mysterious individuals from before.

"Hunt?" Flandre asked in surprise, "Where'd they go?"

"Huh? The graveyard, probably lookin' for you if I had to guess…"

"Hmmmm…Let's go check these guys out Koishi." Flandre said.

Koishi frowned and shook her head, "Nuh-uh! I don't wanna go back there! That umbrella girl is a big bully!"

"C'mon, please Koishi? With lots of sugar on top?" Flandre asked politely.

Koishi's frown faltered a bit, she sighed to herself lightly before replying, "Oh fine…Only cuz Flan-chan asked nicely…but don't expect me to be nice to umbrella girl if we see her!"

"Alright, alright…I get it, thanks Koishi." Flandre said gratefully as she hugged the satori in thanks. The satori seemed slightly taken aback by the act of affection from Flandre, but she eventually returned the hug.

"Oh, and don't expect me to share any sweets with umbrella girl either! I'm keeping them allllllllllllll to myself! Alright Flanny?" Koishi said as the two then set off towards the temple's cemetery in search of these odd visitors.

"Hmmmm…Energetic pair of girls…somehow I think they're going to get themselves in a lot of binds together…" Murasa mumbled to herself before remembering she still wasn't alone quite yet. "Hey Nue, you still alive up there or what?" she asked her friend, who had remained silent the entire time Flandre and Koishi were there. She seemed to be in a hypnotic of some sort.

Nue seemed to snap out of her trance, as she looked around her surroundings quickly. "Huh? Oh sorry…I was…thinking about…something." Nue replied as she watched the pair of Flandre and Koishi enter the cemetery, and disappear from her line of sight.

"About what?"

"…Nothing, just forget about it." Nue replied.

* * *

"Hmph…Who did those two think they were? Poking their noses where they don't belong…" Kogasa grumbled to herself, "I don't see why Kyouko likes them so much…"

Kogasa looked up from her perch on the grave and saw a pair of travelers coming towards her. She squinted to make out the two figures, "Oh not them again…Why won't they leave me alone…" Kogasa muttered, "Wait…Those two aren't the ones from before…" she noted as the pair came close enough to distinguish their features.

"Oh where are they!?" one of them cried, "That ghost said they were out here!"

"Calm yourself princess, they must be nearby. We just need to remain patient…" her partner said in a calm and collected manner.

Despite the lack of aggression in her voice, Kogasa found this woman to be much more intimidating than her black haired cohort. It may have had something to do with the large bow she gripped in one hand, and the arrow she held in the other.

"Huh? Hey you! Umbrella girl!" the black haired woman shouted at her, making Kogasa jump in surprise. She had been spotted.

"Wh-Who me?" Kogasa stuttered.

"Yes, you! Have you seen a young looking youkai girl? About your age and height, wearing red, bizarre pair of wings? Ring any bells?" the black-haired woman asked.

The description matched that blonde-headed girl that visited Kogasa earlier that day. Kogasa didn't really like her all that much, much less her yellow-garbed friend, yet she didn't hate either of them. They hadn't done anything to harm her at all, and she couldn't help but feel that whatever this pair wanted with the blonde-haired girl wasn't going to be anything good.

"Well? Do you or do you not? Answer me!" the black-haired woman shouted impatiently at the karakasa.

"Ummm…I…I can't tell you…" Kogasa said in an almost inaudible voice.

Despite the volume of Kogasa's voice, the black-haired woman seemed to hear each word Kogasa had said perfectly. She frowned at the karakasa, "What…did you say? I thought I heard you say 'I can't tell you.' Am I hearing things little youkai, or is that what you truly said?"

Kogasa took a deep breath and mustered every ounce of courage she possessed and said, "Yes, that's what I said! Now leave me alone! I'm not telling you anything!"

"Excuse me? Do you know who you're addressing? You are graced by the presence of Princess Kaguya Houraisan! Now tell me where that damned girl ran off to, along with that red-headed fool before I beat the answers out of you!" the black-haired woman demanded.

Kaguya began to approach the karakasa, not looking at all pleased with Kogasa's act of defiance. Kogasa flinched in fear, looking away from the enraged princess. Whatever reason Kaguya wanted that girl in red for; she must have been desperate to go to such lengths like beating leads out of innocents. Kogasa had not been so terrified of a human since her last run in with that mountain shrine-maiden.

Just as Kaguya finished trampling towards the frightened girl, her grey-haired companion stepped between the two. Suddenly, this grey-haired stranger didn't seem to be so frightening.

The grey-haired woman said to her friend calmly, "Princess…I realize that you have tired of this witch-hunt of a bounty, so have I. But we must remain calm…We cannot beat the answers out of anyone who refuses to aid us…"

Kaguya took a deep breath and exhaled, "Right…Sorry Eirin…It's just that I want to crush that insignificant red-haired wench! No one makes a fool out of me and not suffer the consequences!"

Eirin put a hand on Kaguya's shoulder, "In due time princess, you can exact your revenge soon. Just let me do the talking and we'll find them in no time." Eirin turned her attention away from Kaguya and to Kogasa. "Now, little youkai, on behalf of my companion, I apologize. We seemed to have gotten off on the wrong foot. I am Doctor Eirin Yagokoro." Eirin said as she held a hand out to the still frightened umbrella.

Kogasa, regardless of her fear took Eirin's hand and shook it timidly. "K-Kogasa Tatara…" she said, not feeling any safer than she was moments before.

"A pleasure to meet you Miss Tatara, now as the Princess had said earlier, we are searching for a blonde-haired girl in a red dress who has an unusual pair of wings. Now could you please tell us of her current whereabouts?" Eirin asked in a businesslike manner. She wore a warm, almost motherly smile on her face.

She had seen Byakuren with a similar smile on her face during the few times she had pleaded with Kogasa to live at the temple. But the smile on this woman's face…Kogasa didn't sense any feelings of warmth or kindness in her expression.

"I-I can't…" Kogasa struggled to say from her overwhelming fear.

Eirin didn't seem to be satisfied by Kogasa's reply, with her smile fading and forming into a frown. "Are you sure you won't consider telling us what you know? If you assist us you'll be rewarded handsomely…Princess Kaguya and I are quite influential in the some circles of Gensokyo, I'm sure we could get anything a youkai like you could desire…we will also run into quite a bit of spending money if we find this girl, we would be more than happy to give you a portion of it…"

Despite Eirin's attempts at bribery, Kogasa's resolve remained strong. "No…Sorry, I can't help you…N-Now please leave…"

Eirin remained silent as she glared at the small youkai with obvious contempt. "I'm sorry to hear that, Miss Tatara. I hoped we would have been able to settle this like civilized people. But if you won't tell us what we want to know…We'll simply have to convince you to loosen that tongue of yours in a much less civilized manner."

"Wh-What do you mean?" Kogasa asked timidly as she began to tremble from her fear.

Before Kogasa could receive a response to her question, the wind was knocked out of her lungs from a powerful blow to the stomach from Eirin. She followed up with an uppercut to the stunned karakasa's jaw, knocking her off from her perch on the grave she sat upon.

Kogasa landed on her back with a loud thud. Her vision became distorted from the sudden strike to her head, causing her to see doubles. Before she could recover from her dizziness, Kaguya decided to join in on Eirin's assault and deliver a powerful punch into her gut. Kogasa yelped in pain from Kaguya's ferocious attack, holding the spot she had been struck in with her open hand, using her other to hold her umbrella.

Kaguya seemed to want to continue her attack, as she slowly approached the karakasa with an annoyed scowl on her face. But to Kogasa's surprise, she was stopped by Eirin.

"So Miss Tatara…have you come to your senses? I take no pleasure in your pain. If you just tell us where the vampire is you wouldn't need to suffer any longer…"

"I-I said I can't…" Kogasa said weakly as she clumsily got back to her feet, using her umbrella to support herself in her weakened state.

Eirin shook her head in disapproval, letting out a deep sigh. "Miss Tatara, let me ask you something. Do you enjoy suffering? You could make things so much easier on not only yourself, but us as well…it's a pity really."

Kaguya seemed to take that as a sign to continue her onslaught on the youkai girl. She approached her with long strides and an almost eager expression on her face. This time she picked up Kogasa by the collar of her dress, lifting her up from the ground. Kaguya then proceeded to knock the living daylights out of her, pounding her in the face with several powerful punches with strength she had developed over centuries of battling her arch-rival.

Eventually Kaguya became bored with venting her frustration on Kogasa's face and tossed her aside dismissively like a young child who had grown bored with playing with a toy. Kogasa landed face first at the foot of the grave she had been sitting on peacefully just moments ago. She found just enough strength to raise her head and wipe the blood that was now flowing out from her mouth and nose with her sleeve, staining them red.

Kaguya, with a bored expression on her face made an odd pose, with her hands starting to glow with a blue aura. Eventually a blue orb of energy formed in her hands, it began to hum with energy. "Hadouken!" Kaguya shouted, sending the ball of energy soaring right towards the downed youaki.

Kaguya was expecting there to be an explosion of some sort from her efforts, but much to her surprise and disappointment, there wasn't anything resembling an explosion. Kaguya's went wide with surprise as something unexpected had happened, she didn't even have a second to react as the very attack she had sent at the downed youkai was volleyed right back to her. Kaguya began to open her mouth as if to say something, but her words were inaudible over the loud explosion that ensued.

The explosion caused a cloud of dust to rise from its impact, obscuring the one being unfortunate enough to be hit by the impact with a veil of dirt and dust. Eirin looked at Kogasa with mild interest as she stood on two shaky legs. Her breath was labored as she struggled to stand upright; the karakasa looked absolutely exhausted from the struggle.

"Hmmmm…Well that was…an unexpected turn of events to say the least." Eirin said with an even tone, not sounding one bit concerned over the misfortune that had befallen Kaguya.

The dust in the air began to settle as Kaguya rose up from the blow she had just received courtesy of Kogasa. She didn't appear to be in a good condition, her face looked like it took on a few minor burns and her hair was an absolute mess. Her clothes weren't in a much better condition, as they were torn in several places and covered with dirt. Kaguya's face was warped with shear anger, as her face slowly recovered from the damage Kogasa had caused to it, with her skin turning back to the flawless condition it had been in before.

"How dare you…" Kaguya growled, "You…You pathetic little youkai…you ruined one of my finest robes! You insignificant little nothing, I'll beat you to a bloody pulp for what you've done!"

Despite Kaguya's enraged state, Kogasa didn't seem to fear her, or show any sort of reaction what so ever. She just continued to pant for air as she glared at her attackers.

Kaguya seemed to take Kogasa's lack of reaction as another insult as her growling grew louder before she let out a loud battle cry, flying at the karakasa with murderous intent. Kaguya swiped at her target with a downward punch aimed for her head, but miraculously Kogasa had managed to side-step out of the way. Kaguya followed up on her unsuccessful attack with a round-house kick, which Kogasa blocked with the shaft of her umbrella, successfully avoiding another attack.

Kogasa's luck wouldn't last though, as Kaguya quickly threw a punch right in her gut, knocking her into the very grave-stone that she was always seen using as a seat. Kogasa quickly recovered from the blow in time to see Kaguya charging at her once again to continue her merciless attack.

Before Kaguya could land a blow on her though, she was unexpectedly smacked in the side of the head with Kogasa's umbrella, causing her to reel back in pain. Kogasa took this small opening and gave Kaguya a powerful jab to the stomach, sending her flying back from the karakasa's surprising amount of strength.

Kaguya landed head first onto the hard ground right next to Eirin, who was just idly watching the fight with interest. "Damn it all! How can this insignificant piece of trash not be dead by now!? Dang it Eirin, help me!" Kaguya shouted.

Eirin didn't appear to notice Kaguya's shouting, as her eyes remained fixed on Kogasa, who still seemed to be struggling against her injuries to put up a fight against her assailant. Eirin's eyes slowly drifted to the grave-stone that stood behind Kogasa, she stared it for a moment before directing her attention to Kaguya, who was still screaming at her to lend her assistance.

"Princess, focus your attacks on that gravestone that karakasa is standing by." Eirin said in a monotone, not even taking an eye off the youkai girl as she spoke.

Kaguya was perplexed by Eirin's command, raising an eye-brow. "Huh? What good'll that do? I want to pound her face in, not some grave!" Kaguya protested.

"Just do it Princess." Eirin insisted, "Trust me."

"Oh fine…If anything it'll help me relieve some of my anger…" Kaguya mumbled quietly as she leapt into the air once again, this time with a new target in mind.

Kogasa's tired eyes turned wide with shock once she saw that Kaguya was approaching the grave at great speeds, with her right fist glowing with a colorful aura. "N-No!" Kogasa cried, as she chased after Kaguya in an attempt to stop her, ignoring the searing amount of pain she felt with each step she took.

Kaguya pulled her fist back and swung with all the might she could muster, causing a resounding crunching noise once her fist made contact with her target. Much to Kaguya's continued annoyance; she found that instead of striking the tombstone, she had instead landed a nasty punch right into Kogasa's stomach instead.

The force of Kaguya's punch sent the karakasa flying, knocking right into the gravestone she had taken Kaguya's punch for. This time Kogasa didn't get back up, she remained lying on the hard and cold ground of the cemetery lifelessly. The only indication that she was still alive was the small breaths of air she took in, with her face wincing in pain with each breath she took.

Kogasa no longer had the strength to stand, the only thing she could do is watch as Kaguya approached her with a smug grin on her face. "Is that all you have little youkai? I must admit, I had thought you would have had a little more fight in you after that little trick you pulled…what a pity."

Kogasa gave a weak moan of pain, as Kaguya picked her up from the ground by her hair. "Now tell me little youkai, where is that pesky little vampire?" Kaguya asked. She received no response, just a blank stare from Kogasa.

"Damn it! Speak you pathetic little youkai!" Kaguya roared as she raised her other fist, ready to send it into the karakasa's face again. But Eirin slowly lowered her fist for her; Kaguya gave Eirin a look of puzzlement, but didn't argue against her.

"I don't believe we can beat the answers out of this one, princess. Quite odd, most young youkai never have such strong resolves…Though I believe I have found her breaking point…" Eirin said as she took a meaningful look at the gravestone that Kogasa had desperately struggled to defend against Kaguya.

"M-Master!" a familiar voice called out.

Eirin turned her attention away from the tombstone and found her apprentice, staring at both her and Kaguya with shock, or more specifically, the bloody mess that Kaguya held by the hair. Reisen turned ill from what she was looking at, with her skin turning pale as she continued to stare at the youkai Kaguya had brutally beaten.

"Oh hello Reisen, I was wondering where you had run off to." Eirin greeted.

"Wh-What did you do!?" Reisen cried as she pointed to the lifeless body of Kogasa, who swayed back and forth gently in the wind.

"Never mind that now Udonge, we have more important matters to worry about at the moment. Now assist us in loosening this one's tongue and destroy that gravestone." Eirin commanded as she pointed towards the tomb she spoke of.

"Wh-What? But master that's-"

"Enough Udonge, do as I say." Eirin interrupted, glowering at the moon rabbit.

Reisen remained silent for a few moments, looking back and forth between her two masters. Eirin crossed her arms impatiently, scowling at her as she waited for her to stop gawking at her and carry out her order. Kaguya on the other hand didn't even seem to notice she had arrived, as she just looked at her victim with an uninterested look on her face.

Finally Reisen sighed sadly in defeat, "…Yes master…" she mumbled as she reluctantly made her way to the gravestone Eirin had directed her to.

Reisen took her right arm and with a lone finger, she pointed to it. Her finger slowly charged up with magical energies. It glowed lightly with a red aura as it began to fill with power.

As Reisen charged up for one large blast on the grave, Kogasa seemed to come to with her eyes slowly struggling to open. Her vision was momentarily blurred before slowly becoming clear. She saw a third person along with her two attackers; she had her finger pointed right at the grave she had been protecting. Kogasa's eyes widened with fear and dread as she realized what this new stranger was doing.

"N-No! Stop! Please!" she cried as tears began to well up in her eyes.

Reisen gave her a sorrowful look and mouthed a few words that she couldn't make out before releasing her attack. There was a loud explosion, causing several birds to fly away in reaction to the sudden noise.

The explosion caused debris and dust to go flying everywhere, once it cleared; the grave Kogasa had given her all to protect was gone. The only trace that it had ever been there in the first place being the small pile of rubble that remained.

Kogasa stared at her precious grave's remains, as tears began to drip from her eyes. "No…no, no, no, no, no, no, no, NO!" Kogasa cried in despair. She quickly freed her herself from Kaguya's grip, running over to what was left of the grave. "Th-This can't be…M-Master…" she cried as tears dripped from her face.

Kogasa was quickly knocked out again with a powerful punch to the head from Kaguya, who had an annoyed look on her face. "Goodness what an annoying youkai…Thought I would have gone crazy from her blubbering…" Kaguya said irritably.

"Princess…I realize that she was an annoyance, but you knocked her out again. How are we supposed to question someone who is unconscious?" Eirin asked, trying to hide the anger in her voice while massaging her temples in frustration.

"Oh…whoops…My bad!" Kaguya said with a sheepish grin, "It's just that she was beginning to give me a headache with that insufferable crying…"

The two continued on with their exchange as if this were an everyday occurrence. Reisen remained silent as she looked at the two of them in disbelief. Reisen felt sick to her stomach as she looked at her hands in disgust for what she had done.

But what was she supposed to do? Disobey the ones who had sheltered her when she had no home? Fed her when she was on the brink of starvation? Despite their questionable actions, she could never find it in herself to disobey them; she owed them too much to betray them.

Reisen looked at the unconscious body that lied before what was left of the tombstone with remorse. "Please forgive me…"

"I suppose all we can do now is search elsewhere for our prize…She and her companion should still be in the temple grounds somewhere…" said Eirin as she and Kaguya walked past the girl they had ferociously beaten just minutes before without even a twinge of guilt on their faces.

"I guess…Man, what a complete waste of time…" Kaguya muttered as she walked beside Eirin.

"Come Udonge, there's no point in remaining here any longer." Eirin commanded.

Reisen took one last remorseful look at the heavily wounded girl before replying with her usual response, "Y-Yes master…" she quickly trotted after them, trying to ignore the deep sense of guilt she felt.

"Man Flanny, I'm starting to think that ghost lady was pulling our legs…I don't see anyone around here…" a childish voice commented, causing both Eirin and Kaguya to stop in their tracks.

"China says that patience is a virtue! I'll bet we'll find who cap'n Murasa was talking about eventually!" another, familiar voice replied happily.

The disappointment on Kaguya and Eirin's faces quickly faded away and turned into large grins. "Huh, maybe this wasn't a waste of time after all!" Kaguya said cheerfully.

"I believe you are correct princess." Eirin replied, looking equally as happy as Kaguya.

Reisen however didn't share their happiness, "Please turn back…" she mumbled quietly, with her masters not seeming to notice her quiet plead.

Much to Reisen's sadness and her master's pleasure, the one they were seeking came into view. But strangely enough, Flandre was not accompanied by her red-headed guardian, rather she was accompanied by a girl that looked to be about her age. She had a carefree look to her as she skipped about through the graveyard.

This carefree look vanished from her face as she noticed their presences; she cocked her head to the side as she looked at them curiously. "Hey Flanny, are these the friends the cap'n was talking about?" she asked, turning to Flandre for an answer.

Flandre also noticed the trio; she was surprised at their presence at the cemetery. "Moon-lady? What're you doing here?" she pouted at the pair of Kaguya and Eirin, who seemed to find amusement in her reaction. She then noticed Reisen behind them, who avoided eye-contact with the vampire from guilt. "Miss Bunny-Rabbit…?"

Before any reply could come from Reisen, Eirin spoke up. "Hello again Miss Scarlet, I trust you've been doing well?" she said casually, "I see that red-headed guardian of yours is missing, quite a shame…and the Princess was so anxious to see her again."

"You big meanies, why can't you just leave me alone!?" Flandre yelled, stomping her foot into the ground forcefully, causing the ground to crack a bit from her strength.

"Huh? These aren't Flan-Chan's friends?" Koishi asked, looking baffled by the turn of events. Flandre nodded in response, while not once taking her eyes off the pair of Lunarians. "Oh…I see…Well I'll make these bullies go away!" she shouted, shooting the trio an accusing finger. "Leave Flanny alone, or I'll punish you!"

"Oh really? You'll punish us? That's laughable!" Kaguya giggled, "Just come along nice and easy now or you'll end up like that stupid umbrella girl…"

"Kogasa?" Flandre asked.

"Oh yeah…I guess that's what she said her name was…Stupid girl, she should have known better than to oppose me…" Kaguya muttered.

"What did you do to her!?" Flandre shouted at the moon princess.

Kaguya snickered in amusement, "See for yourself." She said as she turned around and picked something up. Being held by the hair of her head was Kogasa, who was unconscious. Her face was covered with her blood, her body covered with scratches and her dress was tattered and ripped in several places. Her umbrella was abandoned by a small pile of debris.

Kaguya then tossed her uncaringly towards the pair, landing with a small thud. Flandre's eyes began to well up with tears at the sight of the badly beaten karakasa. She clenched her fists in anger and glared at the moon princess with contempt.

"I'll…I'll break you…" Flandre growled.

Flandre held out one of her hands, where a black rod materialized in a flame-like aura. The rod had a spade-like head at its end, and looked like it was crooked in the middle, making one bizarre looking weapon. Koishi seemed to look at Flandre with a sense of awe and admiration for a moment before taking a fighting stance along with her.

Kaguya just laughed at the display, "The hard way then? How foolish of you! That red-head isn't here to save you, and Mokou sure isn't going to show up and play the hero either. That new little friend of yours won't help you one bit kid. You'll both just end up as a bloody mess just like that piece of trash before you!"

"Just remember Princess, we can't rough the vampire up too much. Remilia wants her alive." Eirin said as she took out her bow, "However…she said nothing about this friend of hers…" she said as she aimed her bow at Koishi.

"Yeah, yeah…Let's just get this show over with! I want my money!" Kaguya said impatiently as she prepared to put this hunt to an end.

* * *

**A/N: Hey, thanks for reading the latest chapter of this story! I got this one done a lot faster than usual, and it's still just as long as the other chapters. Thank you five day weekend. :P I admittedly enjoyed writing this chapter for some reason...Hopefully I don't turn out to be some psychopath, eh? Originally this chapter and the next was going to be one chapter, but I didn't want it to get too long, so I split it into two.  
**

**Oh yeah, I forgot to mention this before, but I recently reworked the first two chapters, so they're you know...less crappy. So give them a read sometime! I actually plan to do the same for chapter 3 soon.**

** Next chapter will hopefully wrap up the Myouren temple arc and progress somewhere else. Hope you look forward to it!  
**


	17. Chapter 17: Downfall

"Ah…What a relaxing nap…I feel like a new youkai!" Meiling said to herself cheerfully as she exited her room in the temple. "Hmmmm…I wonder what Flandre and Koishi have been doing to keep themselves busy…staying out of trouble I hope."

Meiling slowly made her way to the temple's mess-hall, whistling to herself merrily as she did. As she entered the massive room, she found Shou and Nazirin lounging at a nearby table, they looked like they were having a pleasant conversation.

"Afternoon Ms. Shou, Ms. Nazirin." She greeted to the pair.

"Yo." Nazirin replied simply as she leaned back in her chair.

"Hello Meiling, I trust you had a good rest?" Shou returned to the gatekeeper.

"An excellent one! I must say, the beds here are fantastic! Much better than the one I have back at the mansion!"

"I'm glad to hear that, Byakuren spares no expense in the comfort of our guests…sadly it leaves quite the hole in our pockets…"

"That's quite unfortunate…I'll have to leave a few donations, it's the least I could do after all of you have done for us."

"It's no problem; we get by fine thanks to Nazirin's treasure finding abilities, right Naz?" Shou asked, looking to her partner.

"Hey if the lady wants to give us donations let her. Sure makes it a heck of a lot easier on me…Not very easy finding any valuable treasure by yourself y'know." Nazirin replied.

"What are you blabbering on about Naz? I help you look for treasure all the time!"

"Feh…Some help that is…I swear your ability is more like losing treasure rather than attracting it…" Nazirin snickered.

"You misplace one priceless and irreplaceable artifact one time, and no one ever lets you live it down…" Shou muttered quietly, with her head downcast in shame.

"Nope. Way too funny to do that." Nazirin said as a smug grin crept onto to her face, showing off her pearly white teeth.

"Yes well um…Have either of you seen where Flandre and Koishi have run off to?" Meiling asked, quickly changing the subject.

Shou raised her head from the table and replied, "Yeah, they should be in the cemetery. They were asking about a youkai who had taken up residence there a while back, they probably just wanted to be friends with her. If I had to guess, they're all probably just playing together and having a good time."

"Hmmmm…Well I'm glad she's making some new friends…Maybe I should check up on her though…" Meiling trailed off, as she prepared to go to the cemetery.

"Oh don't be such a worry-wart; the youngsters are probably just playing like the boss said. They're fine…Why not just take a seat and take a load off? The boss and I were just about to start a game of cards, why not join us?" Nazirin said as she took out a deck of cards from her dress pocket.

"Well…I suppose you're right, I mean what's the worst thing that could happen? No need to interrupt their fun." Meiling said, taking a seat between the two at the table.

"See, there we go! Now let's get this show on the road here now, shall we?" Nazirin said as she started handing out cards to each of them.

"Ah, a game of cards, may I join?" Mamizou said as she entered the room, causing the three of them to look back at her.

"Of course Ms. Mamizou, the more the merrier. Naz was just handing out the cards, take a seat." Shou said, patting the seat of the chair next to her invitingly.

"Well don't mind if I do, I could use a good game of cards right about now."

"Alright, let's start out nice and slow for granny Mamy here…Ever play 'Go fish' granny?" Nazirin asked smugly, earning her a glare from Shou, which she ignored.

Mamizou took Nazirin's sarcastic attitude in good humor, chuckling at the mouse. "I do believe I have heard of the game my fine youkai."

"Ah good, don't worry, I'll go easy on ya." Nazirin said as she finished handing Mamizou her hand of cards.

"No need for that now, I may not look like it, but I used to be quite the card-shark in the outer-world. I do believe I can handle a simple game of 'Go fish.'"

"Oh I'm sure you were granny, I'm sure you were…Now…have any eights?"

* * *

"Why…Won't…You…Stay…STILL!?" Kaguya roared as she threw another punch at Flandre, who once again dodged her attack effortlessly.

Flandre took the small break in her attack to give one of her own to the lunar princess, horizontally slashing at her with laeveteinn, which landed successfully, causing the moon princess to yelp in pain.

Before she could recover from Flandre's attack, the vampire began to throw blood-red balls of pure energy at the lunarian in rapid succession. Kaguya screamed in agony as the shots made contact with her, being unable to dodge the attack. Flandre's attack didn't just injure Kaguya, but it also scarred the landscape of the cemetery, making it look like an oni had trampled through the area.

Despite the amount of punishment Kaguya had suffered from Flandre's attack, she still recovered, slowly rising from the ground with eyes full of anger and hatred. "Not bad vampire…But play time is over…You won't escape this time…"

Without warning Kaguya leapt right at the vampire with inhumane speed, and threw another clumsy punch at her, which was once again avoided. The vampire's quick reflexes only served to anger Kaguya further, as each punch became more powerful, and even clumsier than the last.

* * *

Meanwhile, Koishi was preoccupied with Eirin, who was busy shooting arrows at the satori with her large bow, sending arrows flying throughout the graveyard in great quantities and speeds. Koishi narrowly dodged yet another arrow, this one being aimed right for her heart. Koishi rolled behind a nearby tombstone and used it as a shield from Eirin's frantic shooting.

Eirin held her fire as she saw the futility in continuing to shoot at the satori. She laughed lightly at Koishi's tactic. "What's the matter little satori? Scared of little old me? Why not just come out from behind that grave and-" the brain of the moon's sentence was cut short by a powerful attack from behind, causing Eirin to fall flat on her face.

Eirin looked up in anger as she saw who had the audacity to attack her mid-sentence, and from behind as well. Much to her confusion, she saw that her attacker was the very satori she was shooting arrows at just moments before.

"That's enough you big bully! Now stop shooting those pointy sticks! You could poke someone's eyes out!" Koishi said as she looked down at the fallen moon-doctor.

Eirin growled in anger, she rolled away from the satori and loaded her bow once again, this time aiming an arrow right at Koishi's third eye. This time Koishi jumped into a nearby tree to dodge the arrow, it was dead, with all of its leaves gone and its bark being a sickly grey color. Eirin quickly shot a volley of arrows toward the tree-top, with Koishi once again dodging her arrows. This time she jumped from the tree and used Eirin's head as a landing-pad, which only served to infuriate the doctor further.

"What a pest you are. I don't think in all my years of living have I ever met a youkai who has ran away so much…Though I suppose that's all you're good at, aren't you Ms. Komeiji?" Eirin asked in a cold and even tone.

"Huh, you know who I am?"

"Yes, how could I not know of one of the greatest cowards in Gensokyo, Ms. Komeiji? You're possibly the biggest coward I've ever met…First you ran away from that third eye of yours, and now you're running away from my attacks rather than putting up a fight. Though I suppose once one begins to run, they find it difficult to stop. Am I right?" Eirin said as a cruel grin grew on her face.

"Sh-Shut up…" Koishi whispered, with tears beginning to well up within her eyes.

"My, we're beginning to run away from the truth now? Let me ask you Ms. Komeiji, does that sister of yours still love you even after you abandoned her and left her to suffer all by herself? What was her name again…Satori was it?"

"Shut up! Big sister loves me with all her heart!"Koishi shouted in denial, refusing to accept Eirin's words as the truth.

"Hmmmm, just can't accept the truth, can we? How pitiful…"

Tears were freely flowing from Koishi's eyes as she stared at the moon doctor hatefully. Suddenly without any warning, she vanished from thin air without a trace, surprising the moon doctor slightly. "Hmmmm…Invisibility? No…It's something else…I can't sense her presence at all…" Eirin muttered to herself as she scanned the area for the satori.

Eirin tried to listen for any nearby movement from her prey, but all she could hear was the grunts of struggle and roars of rage from Kaguya as she continued to engage the vampire. She was surprisingly much stronger than Eirin had first predicted…capturing her may be a much more difficult task than she had first thought.

Eirin was snapped out of her musings as the satori rematerialized right before her, with an angry scowl on her face that was wet with tears. "Ah, there you are." Eirin said before bringing her fist down right at the satori, but just before her fist could make contact with her face, Koishi disappeared once again, leaving Eirin baffled. "Hmph, running again? Perhaps history does repeat itself…"

Eirin quickly turned around just in time to see the slippery satori reappear right behind her, before she vanished just as quickly as she had appeared. Leaving Eirin both frustrated and slightly unhinged. Eirin then let out a gasp as the satori rematerialized before her, and lifted her up from the ground by her collar with a surprising amount of strength.

Eirin remained silent over Koishi's hateful gaze, looking her right in the eye, with her usual calm and cool demeanor. Though her poker face was broken after Koishi gave her a hard punch to the gut, knocking the wind from the lunarian's lungs. Koishi continued to punch the lunarian with as much strength as she could muster, before slamming her into the ground forcefully, imprinting a human sized crater into the ground.

Eirin retreated from the satori as quickly as she could, she didn't desire to be struck again by the satori's ferocious amount of strength. The satori perplexed Eirin to no end, first she inexplicably vanishes, and now she displays strength and agility not known to be a trait of satoris. She had never been so interested in a youkai in her hundreds of billions of years of life. If she had the chance, she would have liked to observe this satori, perhaps even dissect it if the opportunity presented itself.

But now was no time to think of such ideas, especially when said satori was very much so angry with her. Her attempt at psychological warfare has back-fired; she now had a very powerful and very angry satori out for her blood.

Eirin was snapped out from her thoughts after a fierce kick in the head from Koishi, who had an emotionless expression as she attacked, though her face was still wet with the tears she had shed earlier. The force of the attack sent Eirin barreling across the temple's cemetery; she only stopped flying until her head very painfully made contact with the hard surface of a gravestone. The impact caused a bit of blood to spring from her head, not to mention bring up some very painful memories of a certain were-hakutaku's head-butt.

Eirin groggily rose from the ground, with her vision blurred from the blow her head received. Eirin took a moment to get a grasp on her vision, but that moment allowed the satori to once again creep up on her, as in the blink of the eye, Koishi was once again standing right before her. Her emotionless expression was unsettling to say the least, as Eirin quickly jumped into the air to avoid being caught by the satori's grasp.

Eirin decided to go back on the offensive, taking advantage of her new altitude over Koishi as she shot arrow after arrow in succession at her. Raining the area with arrows, Eirin also gave her arrows a small boost in power, sending danmaku bullets down along with the arrows, shooting down a storm of projectiles at the satori. Surely even she couldn't avoid such a large radius attack. Though Koishi didn't show any trace of fear, she just stared up at Eirin's array of attacks with that same blank expression she had been wearing.

Eirin's attack scarred the immediate area, causing plumes of dirt to rise from the ground from her various attacks slamming into the earth with such force. Eirin didn't want to cause so much damage to the temple grounds, but it couldn't be helped, this satori needed to be stopped as quickly as possible.

Just as Eirin began to feel certain that she had finally finished the satori, her eyes went wide as Koishi once again appeared before her, and without a single scratch or other indication she had been scathed by her barrage. Koishi didn't hesitate for a moment as she raised both of her arms above her head and slammed them downward at speeds that even a tengu would have been impressed with. Her attack sent Eirin flying downward screaming before finally crashing into the ground, causing another crater sporting her shape to be carved into the ground.

"D-Damn…This…This isn't going all too favorably for me…Udonge! Assist me in wiping this pest out from Gensokyo!" Eirin shouted. Eirin waited a few moments for a response from her apprentice, but didn't hear anything from the lunar rabbit. "Udonge! Speak when you have been spoken to! Now help me eliminate this pest!"

Once again, there was no response. Eirin looked around for the moon-rabbit, but found no trace of her. Eirin finally realized that she hasn't seen her at all since the battle had broken out; she had been too preoccupied with exterminating the pest before her to take notice of Reisen's absence.

"Damn it Udonge…Where did you run off to…" Eirin growled. Before dusting her dress off and getting back to her feet. Soon enough Koishi landed on the ground gracefully nearby the lunarian, and stared at her in silence. "Hmph…I suppose I'll have to take care of you by myself…" Eirin managed a grin despite the situation she was in, "Ready whenever you are, Ms. Komeiji."

* * *

"Dang it! This can't be possible! I'm calling bull-crap!" Nazirin yelled across from the table at Mamizou, who had a pleased grin on her face.

"Say what you want my friend, but I truly don't have any fives. Go fish." Mamizou replied.

"No way! Show me your cards!" Nazirin demanded, pounding her fist onto the table in outrage.

Shou sighed at her friend's childish tantrum, "Naz…Just go fish already…"

Nazirin groaned in defeat, and reluctantly took a card from the deck in the middle of the table, adding it to the massive hand of cards in her hands. Nazirin took a glance at everyone else's cards, and groaned even louder when she saw that everyone else had a much smaller amount of cards than her, with Mamizou being in the lead.

"Don't look so down Nazirin, go-fish is mostly a luck based game anyways." Mamizou said reassuringly.

"Whatever…Go-fish is a dumb game anyways…" Nazirin muttered under her breath, as she pounded her head into the table in frustration, inciting some laughter from Meiling and Mamizou and an exasperated sigh from Shou.

"Say, Ms. Mamizou, I've been meaning to ask you about that little meeting you had with Flandre yesterday…" Meiling began, breaking the momentary silence between the group.

"What about?"

"Well…Specifically what you spoke to her about. I'm just a little concerned is all."

"Oh nothing much…Just a brief discussion about some of her family problems…Unfortunately I cannot say any more than that, I swore to confidentiality, and I would be a lousy tanuki if I were to break my word."

"I understand, thank you."

"Not a problem, I must say I admire your devotion to your friend. It's rare to see such strong bonds of friendship these days..."

"Thank you, we go way back." Meiling said happily.

"I thought so, that Flandre seems to put a great amount of faith than you, more than I've seen some humans give to their gods around here." Mamizou said with a hearty laugh, "So do be sure to take care of her, and her little friend too, I imagine those two will get themselves into quite a bit of trouble together."

"Y'mean Flan's shadow?" Nazirin spoke up.

"Nazirin, again, don't be speaking poorly of our guests." Shou chastised.

Nazirin rolled her eyes at the tigress, "Oh whatever boss, you call her that too."

Shou's eyes went wide and her cheeks turned a rosy hue of red, "I-I don't have any idea what you're talking about Naz!"

"What, don't you remember?" Nazirin asked as a snide smile grew on her face, "Just today you said, 'look at that girl go, if she followed Flandre and closer, I might've mistaken her for her shadow.'"

"Please forgive Nazirin everyone, she's obviously spewing falsehoods about me to attract attention to herself, please ignore her." Shou said as she covered her face in an attempt to hide her embarrassment.

Despite Shou's excuse, the three of them burst into laughter, which only made her even more embarrassed than before. The three's laughter was cut short by the sudden appearance of a newcomer entering the room.

"Meiling!"

"Huh?" Meiling turned around to look at who was calling her and saw a familiar face. It was the moon-rabbit that she and Flandre had met during their visit to Eientei, before they had found themselves being hunted down by its owners…the rabbit didn't look very well, her eyes were dull and almost lifeless, and her skin was deathly pale. Her face also had signs of guilt traced on it.

"Hey it's you…Reisen right? What're you doing here?"

"Please, you must hurry! Your friends are in trouble!" Reisen screamed, startling everyone in the room from her sudden outburst.

"What?" Meiling asked in disbelief.

"Hurry! There isn't much time, they're in the temple cemetery, they're battling Master Eirin and Princess Kaguya! Please, help them!" Reisen pleaded to the gatekeeper.

"Flandre…Hold on Flandre, I'm coming!" Meiling shouted, jumping out of her chair and going into a dash towards the cemetery.

"Wait, Meiling!" Shou called after the gatekeeper, but she was long gone. "Dang it…" she growled in frustration.

"Eh…What the heck is going on here?" Nazirin asked, scratching the back of her large ears in puzzlement.

"Nazirin, go get Byakuren!" Shou ordered, leaving the mouse youkai's question unanswered.

"But-"

"Just do it Nazirin! I don't know what's going on here, but it's nothing good!" Shou bellowed, causing Nazirin to scurry out of the room as fast as possible in search of the monk. Shou turned towards the moon-rabbit to question her, but found that she had disappeared. "What the…Where did she go?"

"To answer your question, she left the room just a few seconds after Meiling." Mamizou answered.

"Why didn't you stop her?" Shou growled.

Mamizou shrugged, "Forgive me, I was caught up in the moment and the thought of stopping her completely slipped my mind…How embarrassing…"

Shou grunted in response, "It's too late now; she's long gone…All we can do now is wait for Byakuren to show up…she'll know how to handle this."

* * *

"Gwah!" Kaguya yelped as she struck by another powerful blow from Flandre, sending her across the cemetery with great momentum. Her flight was finally stopped after she hit a dead tree. Any normal human would have been knocked out cold from such a hard hit, fortunately for Kaguya, she wasn't a regular human.

Kaguya slowly got up from the ground and wiped the blood from that was freely flowing from her brow and spat out some blood from her mouth. She glowered at the vampire with frustration, how could such a youkai that was so childish in appearance be so powerful?

Flandre began to charge at Kaguya with inhuman speed, Kaguya almost didn't manage to dodge her attack, the tree she had sat before however wasn't so fortunate. The ferocity of the pint-sized youkai's attack managed to topple the tree over, falling over with a loud crash. Kaguya sighed in relief that she had managed to avoid the vampire's attack; she had no desire to suffer the same fate as that tree.

Kaguya took a glance towards the other battle that was occurring within the graveyard. Eirin didn't seem to be faring any better than she was, she was barely holding on against the satori. That little satori girl was getting the upper-hand, with her attacks overwhelming the lunarian doctor.

"I will not be bested by two children! I REFUSE TO!" Kaguya roared in fury, this time going on the offensive once again. She lunged at the vampire with a magically enhanced punch, striking the vampire right in the face. Kaguya continued to throw magically enhanced punches at the vampire in succession, quickly overwhelming her.

"Lights out brat!" Kaguya shouted as she pulled her fist back and swung at her opponent's face, preparing to finally put an end to this fight.

Kaguya's mouth went agape with shock as her fist was caught by the palm of the vampire's hand. Flandre began to crush the moon princess' hand in her hand, causing Kaguya to scream in pain. Kaguya tried to get out from the vampire's powerful grip, but to no avail. The childish vampire stared at her with an emotionless glare for a moment before releasing her grip on the princess and thrusting her in the stomach with laeveteinn, sending her stumbling backwards.

Kaguya jumped back a few feet to put as much distance between herself and the vampire as possible. Kaguya took a moment to examine the hand that the vampire had crushed with her oni-like strength; fortunately it had begun to recover and was reforming back to normal from its disfigured state. The moon princess gritted her teeth and glared at the vampire with anger. She couldn't believe what was happening; a child was besting her in combat! She had spent hundreds of years battling one of the most stubborn and not to mention powerful being she had ever had the misfortune of knowing, and had developed reflexes and strength that even an oni would have admired. Yet here she was, being beaten by a vampire who hasn't even lived half of the amount of time she has. It infuriated her to no end.

Kaguya refused to let this child defeat her, not without a good fight. Kaguya charged at the vampire once again, this time determined to beat her to an inch of her life. Kaguya prepared for an upward kick aimed right for the little vampire's stupid little head, but Flandre's reflexes kicked in again as she bent her entire body over, causing Kaguya to miss her completely. The moon princess would not give up so easily however, she refused to let this wretch make a fool out of her again!

Kaguya charged her hands with pulsing energy, making both of her hands glow a furious hue of red. Her two palms crackled with power, Kaguya grinned in satisfaction of her efforts before beginning to commence her assault, throwing punches at the pesky little vampire repeatedly. She managed to strike Flandre in the stomach, causing the vampire to spit out some blood from her efforts. Kaguya's grin grew, and began to throw more wild attacks at the vampire to keep her attack's momentum up. The little vampire was losing ground; she kept getting hit more and more often by her attacks, at this rate victory would belong to her, not to this pitiful youkai!

Kaguya's thoughts of victory were knocked out of her as the vampire lashed out at her with a powerful kick to the stomach, causing the moon princess to skid back a few feet from its strength. Kaguya winced in pain as she gingerly felt the wound; the little brat had broken some ribs. Though fortunately for Kaguya, such wounds were only a slight inconvenience thanks to her immortality, and she refused to let such a wound keep her from showing this vampire her place.

Kaguya leapt into the air despite the amount of pain she felt from the movement and began to rain danmaku down on Flandre. The sky was soon filled with orbs that glowed of a variety of colors; it would have been a very beautiful sight if it weren't for the lethality of the barrage. Flandre soon jumped off from the ground and began to pursue her foe, veering out of the way of danmaku bullets that flew around the sky aimlessly.

Flandre soon enough closed the distance between herself and the moon princess and prepared to reengage her. Flandre began to swing at her with laeveteinn. Kaguya blocked the attacks with her arms, as the vampire's wild attacks were too quick and unpredictable to avoid, forcing her to take the hits. Kaguya couldn't take the vampire's hits for long, as Flandre swung laeveteinn in a down-ward arc, landing a blow right on Kaguya's head. The strength from the vampire's attack sent the moon-princess barreling down back to the ground.

Kaguya had miraculously managed to land on both feet, but Flandre's attacks had taken their toll on her. Immortal or not, even she had her limit of how much pain she could take, and she was nearing hers. She prayed Eirin was faring better than she was, they may still be able to defeat these brats and finally get their money.

* * *

This fight was not going at all how Eirin had calculated…With her nearly endless amount of knowledge and the Princess' combat skills, this battle should have ended long ago. Yet the battle still progressed, and they were losing. Eirin continued to run away from the satori. Even in the situation she was in, Eirin couldn't help but appreciate the irony.

Eirin quickly loaded an arrow into her bow and shot it at the satori as she continued to retreat. It was to no avail however, as Koishi just plucked it out of the air just as it was about to pierce her skin. Koishi gave the arrow a thoughtful and curious look for a moment before tossing it behind herself dismissively and continuing the chase.

Eirin furrowed her brow in frustration; this battle was beginning to turn into a hopeless situation. It seemed like nothing she threw at the satori could stop her, much less hinder her. It wouldn't be long before the satori finally caught her and…well; she preferred to not think of what fate might befall her if that happened. So she continued to run, shooting the occasional arrow at the satori in an attempt to slow her down.

Eirin suddenly skidded to a stop, with her eyes wide with rarely shown surprise. The very satori she was being chased by was now before her, with her facial expression being as indifferent and emotionless as ever. Eirin tentatively look over her shoulder, and saw nothing, she cranked her head back to face the satori, who was slightly cocking her head as if she were puzzled by the moon doctor's action.

Eirin refused to let this satori defeat her without at least trying to put up a good fight. She quickly loaded her bow once again and shot another round of arrows at her as quickly as she could. To her dismay however, Koishi was unfazed by them, she simply stepped to the side and avoided them completely. The satori watched as the arrows flew past her bounced off a nearby grave before falling to the ground. Koishi stared at the fallen arrows for a moment before returning her attention to the moon doctor. Koishi slowly began to make her way to the lunarian, staring at her blankly.

Eirin's cool began to fail her, as she began to feel something she had thought she abandoned long ago, she felt fear. Her usual calm demeanor began to crack and was slowly replaced with an utterly frightened expression. Eirin slowly backed away from the satori, as a nervous sweat began to run down her face.

"N-No…Back away…Back away I said!" she roared as she quickly loaded another volley of arrows into her bow and shot them in a last attempt to save herself from this monster.

Her arrows harmlessly flew by the satori as kept on approaching her in a slow pace. This time Koishi didn't bother to even acknowledge her arrows as she didn't pause to stare at them for a moment as she had done before.

Eirin began to make a run for it again, but her retreat was short-lived as she clumsily tripped in her panic, falling to the ground face first. She slowly got up and turned around, only to find that Koishi had finally reached her. Eirin stared her right in the eye, refusing to show anymore fear to this beast and accept her fate with her pride still intact.

Koishi grabbed her by the collar of her dress, pulling her up face to face with her. Eirin took this as an opportunity to spit in her face as one last sign of struggle against her. Koishi didn't seem to notice that Eirin had spat on her, as she didn't once show any sign of agitation or anger from the action as the mixture of blood and saliva slowly slid off her face.

Koishi then raised the brain of the moon up while still holding her grip on her head with her great amount of strength. Koishi stared up at her with eyes devoid of any sort of emotion before smashing her head into the ground. Koishi continued to bash Eirin's head into the ground repeatedly with great vigor, the point of contact the lunarian's head was smashed into slowly formed into a small crater in the shape of her face.

Eirin's face soon became a bloodied mess, she was certain that the satori had broken her nose, and possibly knocked out a few of her teeth as well. Miraculously, she managed to hold consciousness despite the brutality of Koishi's attack. She didn't see the satori taking any breaks in her remorseless attack in the near future. She prayed that the Princess was faring better than she was right now…

* * *

Kaguya panted for breath as her stamina slowly began to diminish, her hatred for this vampire had grown ten-fold, why wouldn't she just go down!? Kaguya was ready to jump back into the fight and show this pitiful little girl just how pathetic she truly was, but her fatigue was too great to even move. Fortunately, the little pest didn't seem like she would launch another attack at her, as she just stared down at her as she floated in the air. How could she fly with wings like those anyhow, especially a girl that pathetic?

Kaguya was snapped out of her thoughts and back into reality as the vampire began to do something strange. She held out one of her arms with all of her fingers out-stretched, as her hand slowly began to glow with a red aura. Flandre began to slowly close fingers, as she did so Kaguya began to feel a burst of pain in her chest; she quickly grabbed her chest in reaction to the sudden sensation. The pain began to grow so much that she began to scream in agony, her pain gradually growing stronger and stronger the more the vampire closed her fingers.

Kaguya began to fear the vampire, just what in the hell was this girl? Kaguya began to wait for her imminent death at the hands of the vampire; she would just resurrect and continue the fight until she finally defeated the little wretch. Kaguya never felt the familiar sensation of death however, as she was saved by one of the most unlikely of people.

"Flandre!"

Flandre stopped what she was doing and turned around at the sound of her name, and found Meiling run towards her. "China…?"

"Don't worry Flandre, I'm here now! I'll protect…you…?" Meiling said as she noticed the condition Flandre's attacker was in. Kaguya was a shadow of her former self, her hair was a black mess, her face was covered with dirt and blood, and her dress was ripped in several places. Kaguya glared at the red-haired gatekeeper as she took in her sight, "…Or perhaps that's not necessary…"

"N-No…It is very much so n-necessary…" Kaguya growled as she wiped some blood off of her face, "She'll need…all the protection she can get…I'll tear her to pieces…and then her pieces into pieces! I'll see each and every one of you peasants bowing down to me, begging for mercy!" she roared.

Meiling didn't look at all impressed by the moon princess' words and smirked at her, "I don't see that happening anytime soon, judging by your appearance. If anything, I think you're the one who needs protection from Flandre."

"Wh-Why you…I don't need any protection from some brat…I'll…I'll destroy you all…" Kaguya said weakly.

"You'll do no such thing."

The three of them turned their attention to the newcomer and saw the pair of Byakuren and her right-hand woman, Shou. Byakuren's warm and nurturing smile was gone, she now wore an expression neither Meiling or Flandre had ever seen the monk wear. She wore an expression of anger. The monk slowly approached the badly beaten moon princess, with Shou walking at her side with a spear in hand.

"Oh y-yeah…? I beg to differ…I'll destroy each and every one of you if that's what it'll take…I refuse to be defeated by this…this…child!" Kaguya screamed.

"Will you now? Are you certain of that? Judging by your looks, I would say you're in no condition to battle any of us." Byakuren said, inciting a feral growl from Kaguya. "I implore you to leave at once, Ms. Houraisan. I have no desire to fight you, or your companion."

"Oh really now!? I'll show you, you pompous bitch!" Kaguya shouted, "Eirin! Come here and help me teach these fools that no one crosses me!" she called, but the moon doctor didn't reply. "E-Eirin…Come over here, NOW!" once again there was no response. Kaguya turned around to see where the moon doctor had gone off to; her eyes went wide with shock as she found out why her friend had not replied.

Lying on the ground unconscious was Eirin, with her face covered with blood, and her body and covered with scratches and bruises. The one who had put the pharmacist in such a terrible state was standing nearby her body, as she emotionlessly stared down at her fallen foe. Kaguya stared with her mouth agape with a combination of fear and shock, how could have that little nothing of a satori have defeated Eirin?

Kaguya turned back to contend with her company, she stared them all done with hateful eyes. She looked like she was considering whether or not she should take her chances against the group or not.

"If you try anything, I guarantee that you will be in the same condition as the moon doctor." Shou growled as she pointed her spear at the lunarian threateningly.

Shou's threat seemed to make Kaguya forget any thoughts of continuing this battle. Her face went downcast as she uttered a simple word, "Reisen…"

At Kaguya's beckoning, the moon rabbit appeared from behind a nearby grave. She looked nervous as she fidgeted with her hands and avoided eye-contact with everyone in the vicinity as she slowly walked over to her master.

"Y-Yes Princess…?"

Kaguya gave a loud grunt before answering her pet, "Go get Eirin…We're…Leaving." Kaguya spat out angrily.

Reisen gave her a quick bow, "Yes Princess…"she quickly ran over to the unconscious doctor, and timidly picked heaved her up onto her back, all the while looking at Koishi with caution. She quickly trotted away from the satori silently and reported back to Kaguya.

"Sh-Shall we be going now, Princess?"

"Yes…Let's go, this place is beginning to make me feel ill." Kaguya huffed before returning her attention back to Flandre and Meiling, "You got lucky this time whelps…Don't think this is the last you've seen of me! I will defeat you…and I will get my money! So enjoy your pitiful victory while it lasts, for it will be the last time you ever get a taste of it!"

Kaguya jumped up off of the ground, flying away from the temple. Reisen gave the group one last look of guilt before following suit with Eirin in tow. The group watched them fly away until they were out of sight and absolutely sure they would not return.

Byakuren sighed sadly to herself as she looked towards the horizon that Kaguya and her allies flown off towards. She soon noticed the unconscious karakasa lying motionlessly on the ground nearby now that the immediate threat was dealt with. Her mouth opened slightly from surprise and disgust, she didn't require any explanation of who had done this to the youkai, for she already knew the group that was responsible. She recovered from her initial shock and ran towards Kogasa, gently picking her up from the ground.

"Shou, prepare a bed for this one. She is in critical condition, we need to work quickly." Byakuren ordered.

Shou bowed to her, "Yes Byakuren, it will be done immediately!" she shouted before sprinting back to the temple as quickly as her legs would carry her.

Byakuren followed after with Kogasa in her arms, quickly making it into the temple, leaving only three individuals left in the graveyard's vicinity. Flandre gave a concerned frown as she looked at Koishi silently, who was just staring at the ground blankly with her back turned to her, seeming completely oblivious to the events that had just transpired around her. Meiling frowned sadly as she put a hand on the vampire.

"Just give her a few moments to herself Flandre, it looks like she could use some time alone…"

Flandre ignored her and shrugged off the gatekeeper's hand. She began to run to her friend. Meiling frowned sadly but did not object to her actions and walked back to the temple.

As Flandre reached Koishi, the satori turned her head back and stared at the vampire with a blank expression before turning to face her. The usual cheery expression that the satori had worn around Flandre was gone without a trace, and replaced with an expression of nothingness. Flandre looked at her friend sadly for a few moments before doing the only thing she could think to do to help her friend.

Flandre wrapped her arms around Koishi and squeezed her into a tight embrace. Koishi stood limply at her embrace, remaining completely still before slowly wrapping her arms around the vampire and returning the affection. Koishi rested her head on Flandre's shoulder before beginning to sob quietly, with hot tears trickling down her face.

* * *

"Come on…don't fail me now…" Byakuren muttered to herself as she began to heal the heavily wounded karakasa, with Ichirin lending her assistance. Their efforts remained mostly fruitless however, as little progress was made. Eirin and Kaguya had done quite a bit of damage to the youkai, expected of two of the strongest beings in Gensokyo.

Shou remained silent as she watched Byakuren and Ichirin try their hardest to heal the youkai, with Nazirin standing at her side faithfully. "Y'think she'll be alright boss…? She doesn't look too hot…" Nazirin whispered quietly.

Shou paused before answering, "I don't know. She should make it out of this fine, youkai die and resurrect every day in Gensokyo…But even so, she isn't exactly in the best of conditions…"

"W-Well why don't we just give that moon-doctor a call and have her help fix her up?"

"Because Nazirin that doctor is one of the people responsible for the condition she's in." Shou replied flatly.

"Oh…Good reason…" Nazirin replied, "So does Kyouko…?"

"No. Mamizou and Unzan are keeping her busy, if she were to see her looking like this…it could overwhelm her."

"Hmmmm…I see…that's good…but we can't keep her out of the dark forever y'know. We have to tell her eventually."

Shou sighed sadly, "I know that. I'll tell her once Kogasa is in a better condition."

"Well, we've done all that we can. She should be fine for now…" Byakuren announced in a somewhat relieved manner as she wiped the karakasa's blood off from her hands with a clean rag.

Ichirin finished wrapping fresh bandages on Kogasa's wounds and gave a relieved sigh, "That should do it…I hope Kyouko won't be too shaken by what happened to her friend…"

"I'm sure she'll be fine, Kyouko's a strong girl. I'm sure she'll just be relieved that she made it through this alright." Byakuren said with a small smile on her face.

"Well, I suppose I should break the news then…I pray that you're right, Byakuren." Shou said before leaving the room, with Nazirin hesitantly following behind her.

* * *

**A/N: Yeah, know how I said I'd wrap this whole Myouren temple thing up this chapter? I lied. Unintentionally of course...I just decided to end the chapter here, as it felt like it was getting a little too long personally, and I like to keep chapters decently sized, not too long and not too short. So the next chapter will be the one that really wraps things up, and will answer the questions that remain unanswered.**

**This chapter got pretty heavy honestly...But still fun to write regardless. May have to take a shot at writing something darker in the future...That'd be interesting to try to say the least. Well, I hope you got a kick out of reading this, next chapter will hopefully be up soon. Until next time!  
**


	18. Chapter 18: The one I serve

The next morning things had begun to settle down from the lunarian's attack on the temple in their failed attempt to capture Flandre. With most of the panic over, Byakuren had begun to make arrangements to repair the devastating amount of damage done to the cemetery and everyone had begun to return to their regular activities aside from one person. The temple's resident yamabiko and janitor was notably missing from the halls.

Kyouko was no longer attending to the halls alongside her trusty broom; rather she was resting peacefully in the room that Kogasa was now situated in with her broom within arm's reach. The karakasa hadn't woken up once since Byakuren had found her and gave her medical attention. She remained resting in bed, with her breath being faint.

The karakasa began to arouse from her slumber, with her eyes beginning to open slowly. The small youkai began to take in her surroundings; she certainly wasn't in the cemetery anymore, that's for sure. She heard the sound of light snoring nearby. She turned her head to snoring's origin and found Kyouko sleeping restfully in a chair next to her. Kogasa finally realized that she was in Myouren temple, she couldn't recall why though…

Kogasa noticed that her friend was beginning to wake up from her slumber, with the yamabiko's eyes beginning to open. Kyouko yawned loudly as she groggily wiped the sleep out of her eyes. Her tired expression quickly disappeared though as she turned to Kogasa and found that she was now awake.

"Boo." Kogasa said quietly as she gave her friend a small smile.

Kyouko remained silent as she stared at the karakasa with a relieved expression before her eyes filled with tears and her mouth began to quiver. Without any warning or indication, Kyouko clamped her arms around her and began to cry into her chest.

"K-Kogasa! I-I…I was so worried about you!" Kyouko cried, with her voice being muffled by Kogasa's baggy clothing. Kyouko's sudden act of affection made Kogasa grimace in pain as she held her tightly, why did she feel so sore all of a sudden, and why was she covered with bandages? She was fine the day before…

Kogasa simply returned the hug happily with a cheerful smile on her face as she asked, "Why would you be worried about me? I'm a tough girl, remember?"

Kyouko backed away from her, wiping tears from her eyes. Kogasa finally noticed that she wasn't wearing her usual light blue dress; she was instead wearing a completely white robe of some sort that felt like it was a few sized too big for her. But she didn't remember ever changing her clothes...

As Kyouko finished drying the tears from her eyes she smiled happily, "Y-Yeah…But Sister Sh-Shou told me that these two brutes came to the temple and…and…beat you up!"

"What?" Kogasa asked in disbelief as her memories of the day before began to slowly come back to her.

"Y-Yeah…I was so worried about you...I'm so happy you're okay…"

"That's right…" Kogasa said quietly, she began to recall everything, the two women, and the fight that ensued…the rabbit girl…and…, "M-Master!" Kogasa cried in distress. The karakasa quickly scrambled out of bed, falling flat on her face on the floor from her struggle with the bed. She quickly recovered from her fall and began to run out of the room in a panic, snatching her eggplant colored umbrella from the wall it was propped against on her way out.

"W-Wait! Kogasa, you need to rest!" Kyouko cried, as she began to chase after her.

Flandre and Koishi sat together at a table in the mess hall by their lonesome, sitting together in silence as they ate their breakfast. Koishi was uncharacteristically quiet, not having spoken a word since she had woken up; her cheerful expression was also notably gone, and replaced with a small frown. The only characteristic she had not lost was her tendency to follow Flandre around wherever she went. Flandre wondered what had happened to her friend yesterday to put her in such a foul mood...

Flandre decided it was best not to ask, and continued to sit together in silence. That was, until Kyouko came running into the room with a distraught expression on her face as she scanned the room frantically, she was obviously searching for something.

The yamabiko quickly approached the silent pair, "Fl…Flandre, Koishi…H…Have you seen Kogasa come through here?" Kyouko asked as she panted for air.

Flandre shook her head in reply, causing Kyouko's ears to droop in response to her answer. "Oh goodness…Where could she be…? She's supposed to be resting…She could hurt herself! Oh what am I going to do?"

"What're you talking about Kyouko?" Flandre asked.

"Oh…Kogasa ran off from her room…She shouldn't be walking around yet! She's supposed to be in bed resting! Can you please look for her Flandre? I can't find her anywhere!" Kyouko explained as her eyes began to fill with tears.

Flandre nodded, "Sure, it'll be like a game of hide and seek, and I'm really good at hide and seek! We'll find her in no time!" she replied enthusiastically, "Right Koi-Koi?"

Koishi didn't respond, and continued to stare blankly at the food set before her. The only sign that she had even heard a word that the vampire had said being her taking her eyes off of her plate for a moment to look at Flandre before returning her gaze back to her food.

Flandre frowned sadly at her friend's lack of enthusiasm; she was beginning to miss Koishi's old flare of cheerfulness and optimism. She hoped that her friend would return back to her normal self soon. Flandre quickly hopped out of her seat, with Koishi slowly doing the same.

"Don't worry, we'll find her, I promise."

"Oh thank you! I really appreciate the help!" Kyouko said with evident gratitude before running off to continue her search. Flandre took that as her cue to start tracking down karakasa, with Koishi silently following behind her. Flandre already had an idea where to begin their search for the missing youkai…

Kogasa ran as quickly as her legs would carry her, her concern was evident as she passed by the ruins of what used to be a cemetery just the day before. Kogasa couldn't believe what had happened to the area she had called home, it looked as if a stampede of blood-crazed demons had rampaged through the area. Only a few tombstones were fortunate enough to be spared from the destruction and left intact, the less fortunate ones were now just a simple pile of rubble. The sight of what had become of the once beautiful area struck her with disbelief and sadness.

The sky seemed to share in her sadness as it was a bleak and depressing grey color, just as it had been during the evening on the day before. The sky's gloominess began to add to the karakasa's fears and diminish what little of her hopes of finding what she was searching for…or at least finding it in one piece.

Kogasa's fears were realized as she found what she so desperately searched for, or at least what remained of it. Kogasa's eyes began to fill with dread as she stared at the pile of debris that was once the grave she had been commonly using as a seat, the very grave that she had tried with all of her might to protect from the lunarians. Kogasa began to feel ill as she stared at what remained of the tomb; her legs began to fail her as she buckled under her own weight and slowly fell to her knees. She continued to stare at the sight before her, not wanting to believe her eyes, she had failed…how could she have let this happen?

Kogasa covered her face with her hands as she quietly began to cry into them, with only one thought in repeating itself over and over again in her head. I failed. I failed. I failed. I failed, I failed, I failed, I failed, I failed…How…How could I have failed him?

"Why're you crying?"

Kogasa slowly turned around and removed her hands from her face to take a look at who had spoken to her. Behind her were the two youkai who had visited her yesterday, only minutes before those two monsters had shown up. The one in red was the one who addressed her, her grey-haired companion was strangely silent in comparison to the day before. The girl seemed…different from yesterday. Her eyes that once shined with a cheerful glint were now dull and almost lifeless; they were now two voids of nothingness.

Kogasa turned away from them and began to dry her face off with the baggy sleeves of the robe she wore. "B-Because…I failed…I failed him…I failed…master…" she sobbed.

The young vampire sat down next to the crying karakasa and looked at her sympathetically, "What master?"

"My master…He must be so ashamed…I couldn't protect him…I'm a terrible excuse for an umbrella!"

Flandre understood little of what Kogasa was going on about, she looked to Koishi to see if she had any better luck in understanding her than she did. Unfortunately, it didn't seem like she understood much of anything the youkai had said, and didn't even appear to be paying any attention to what was going on around her. Instead she seemed to find a sudden interest in her shoes as she stared at them intently. Flandre sighed in dismay, she wished that Koishi would return to her cheerful, if not somewhat rowdy attitude soon, her depressed state was beginning to worry her.

Flandre returned her attention back towards the equally saddened youkai next to her as she resumed her crying, with tears pouring down her face profusely. She was beginning to wish she had brought Meiling along with her, she always managed to cheer her up whenever she was in bad mood…Sadly the gatekeeper was busy packing up their belongings. Meiling had insisted on leaving the temple as soon as they could, yesterday's events would soon be known by everyone in Gensokyo. It wouldn't be long before more individuals began to try to take a shot at collecting the bounty, not to mention the damage that could be caused by any potential bounty hunters to temple grounds. Meiling didn't want to cause the temple anymore misfortune for their sakes.

"Ummm…I dunno what you're talking about…" Flandre said finally after a few moments of silence, not knowing what else to say to the crying youkai.

"H-How don't you know what I'm talking about?" Kogasa asked in disbelief, "I-I let those two brutes destroy master's resting place…I couldn't stop them…I failed him…"

Flandre finally began to understand what Kogasa had been talking about, and just where this 'master' of hers was. "You mean…your boss is…down there?" Flandre asked uncertainly, as she pointed a finger towards the ground where the grave once stood.

Kogasa nodded weakly to answer, putting any doubts in Flandre's mind as who was Kogasa's master. Her master was the one who lay under the earth where the grave was placed; her master was the one who the grave had belonged to. Her master was…dead.

"How could he be your boss? I mean…he's…well…ummm…dead."

"…How? Because…he was the only one who ever liked me…" Kogasa said sadly as she began to hug her legs. "Out of all the humans in the world, he was the only one who ever considered buying me…"

At first Flandre was confused by Kogasa's words, but she soon remembered that Kogasa was a tsukumogami, a type of youkai that was born from an inanimate object. In the case of a karakasa, they were born from umbrellas…or so Meiling had told her long ago. A moment of silence passed before Kogasa continued to speak.

"Master was the only one who didn't think my design was ugly…he bought me when no one else would, he gave me a home. When he bought me…I was the happiest umbrella in the world, someone had finally bought me…" Kogasa said with a sad smile, "Master would take me everywhere with him, out on picnics…on rainy days…he would even bring me with him when it wasn't raining sometimes. It was a good life, the best life an umbrella could ever hope for." Kogasa's smile began to falter and turn into a frown, "But it wouldn't last…"

"One day master became ill…He visited several doctors, but none of them could help him, they all said the same thing…'I'm sorry, I can't do anything to help you…' Soon master became too sick to go out anymore…he would just sleep in and stay at home all day…and then one day he just…died."

"There was a small service held for him a few days later. Hardly anyone showed up for his funeral…he didn't have any family or friends left to care for him…A few days after his burial, everything he owned was taken away…All but me. They forgot all about me, they left me behind. I remained in master's home for years…decades… I thought I would be there for the rest of my life…all alone. That was…until I became a youkai. At first it was amazing…Having your own body I mean. It was quite surprising, one day you're just an old umbrella no one liked, and the next you're a youkai."

"Once I became a youkai, all I wanted to do was go out and explore the world and go scare some humans. Master always used to love surprising the other humans, it always put a smile on his face…At first it was a lot of fun, running around without a care in the world…until that green-haired mountain shrine-maiden showed up with her two friends..." Kogasa grimaced at the memory of her three attackers, since the unidentified fantastic object incident she avoided all three of them, especially the green-haired one… even so, she ended up getting beaten up by them and a samurai once again during the divine spirits incident.

Kogasa paused for a moment, sitting silently as she continued to look at her master's grave sadly. Flandre kept her eyes on the karakasa with great interest; she wanted to hear the rest of her story. Even Koishi, who had been staring at her shoes at the beginning of her tale, was now looking at Kogasa with interest, her face no longer devoid of emotion, but full of curiosity.

"Wh…What happened next…?" Koishi asked quietly, surprising Flandre that she had finally spoken her first words of the day.

Kogasa turned to the satori and looked at her for a moment before replying to her question, "Well…they beat me up…They thought they could beat me up just because I was a weak youkai…Humans can be so cruel sometimes…Then sometime after that Byakuren lady was freed, I heard that her temple was made next to a cemetery. So I decided to move here to scare some humans without having to worry about those brutes trying to beat me up again…This place was like a paradise. No shrine-maidens around to try exterminating you just for crossing paths with them and you get to scare as many humans as you want, what else could a youkai ask for? But then…I found his grave."

"I couldn't believe it…It had been years since I saw master Miyazaki...It was quite…surprising. After decades of separation, I finally found him again…After that, I swore to be by his side as his umbrella again, it's the least I could do after he gave me what I never had…a purpose." Kogasa found herself wiping the last of her tears away with her sleeve as she finished her story. Flandre and Koishi who had listened together silently with open ears looked mystified by her story. "But now…I've lost him again…along with my purpose…what does one do without a purpose?" Kogasa asked glumly.

Another moment of silence passed before her question was answered, "…Big sister says that our purpose in life is to live the lives we've been given to the fullest, and to spend them with the ones we hold closest." Koishi said monotonously.

Kogasa stared at the satori for a moment before replying, "How am I supposed to do that? The only one I've ever held close is master, and he's…"

"Dead." Koishi finished for her, "Gone…But your master wouldn't want you to waste your life dwelling in the past and being his umbrella…He'd want you to spend it with the people who love you…Like Kyouko." Koishi's words took Flandre aback, out of all the time Flandre spent with the satori; she had never heard her say anything so…meaningful before.

Kogasa's cheeks turned red at Kyouko's mentioning, and looked at Koishi with obvious embarrassment on her face. "Wh-What? Ky-Kyouko and I a-are just friends…w-we don't like each other like _that…_"

Koishi grew a small smile on her face, as she giggled at her reaction. "So? You can't love your friends? I love Flanny and China, there's nothing wrong with that…right Flanny?"

Flandre nodded happily, "Right!"

"See? You can love your friends too. I know that Kyouko cares about you a lot, she sent me and Flanny to go find you…she's really worried about you."

"She…She is?"

"Uh-huh, she's worried sick about you. I think your master would want you to stop worrying about him and spend time with her…you should go and talk to her."

"…I guess you're right…Master…Master doesn't need an umbrella anymore…but Kyouko does…I better go see her…" Kogasa slowly rose up from the ground, using her umbrella to help keep her balance. Koishi and Flandre followed her and returned to the temple alongside her. Before entering the temple, Kogasa took one last look at the cemetery. "Goodbye…Master. I'll…I'll never forget you…"

"Kogasa! Kogaaaaaaaaaasa! Where are you!?" Kyouko called out again in her attempt to find the missing karakasa. So far she hasn't seen any sign of Kogasa; she was beginning to lose any hope of finding the girl. "Oh Kogasa…Where on earth did you go…" she muttered sadly, with her ears drooping in sadness.

"Kyouko!"

Kyouko turned back to see who was calling her, as soon as she saw who it was her spirits began to rise. "K-Kogasa!" Kyouko began to run to her friend in a sprint.

Kogasa began to open her arms for the unavoidable hug from the yamabiko, but much to her surprise she didn't receive a hug from her friend. Instead she was given a painful smack on the head by the yamabiko's broom, causing her to cry out in pain and a large bump to grow on her head. The two others in the room grimaced as a large cracking sound echoed throughout the halls.

"Ow! Owww! Owwwwww! Wh-What was that for Kyouko!?" Kogasa asked as she rubbed her head in pain.

"For being a big idiot!" Kyouko said sternly. She looked quite angry with her friend in contrast to the amount of concern she had felt for her less than a minute ago. Her anger quickly vanished though, and her expression began to lighten. "Never do anything like that again you big dummy…You had me so worried…" Kyouko said softly as she hugged Kogasa. "Now you're going back to bed right now! You're supposed to be resting, and I don't want to hear any excuses!"

"Y-Yes mam…" Kogasa said almost in a whisper.

"Thanks for finding her you two! I can't tell you how worried I was…I really appreciate it!" Kyouko said with evident gratitude. She gave the two of them a quick bow before taking Kogasa's hand and dragging back to her room forcefully.

"…Kyouko's kind of scary when she's angry…" Koishi said once the two were out of sight.

"…No kidding…" Flandre agreed.

A few hours later, Meiling had completed packing everything the group had in their possession. The three of them were finally ready to depart. Byakuren and the rest of the temple's residents showed up to bid the group farewell at the gates of the temple.

"Are you sure you won't reconsider staying at the temple a bit longer? It would be no trouble for us at all if you stayed for a few more days." Byakuren asked with concern to the small group of Flandre, Koishi and Meiling.

Meiling slung a large bag over her shoulder and replied, "I appreciate the hospitality Ms. Byakuren, but we don't want to overstay our welcome. Plus we aren't exactly going to be attracting a lot of good characters to your temple…Besides, we still have the rest of Gensokyo left to explore! I truly appreciate everything you and everyone has done for us Ms. Byakuren, you have our gratitude."

"Hmmmm…I thought you would say that…Well I suppose I won't hold you any longer then. Just remember, Myouren temple will always welcome you with open arms. I wish you a safe journey you three."

"We'll keep that in mind, thanks again Ms. Byakuren."

Among the small group of youkai with Byakuren, Kyouko stepped forward, along with Kogasa. She looked like she would burst into tears at any moment as she approached the pair of Flandre and Koishi.

"So…This is it…You're leaving…" Kyouko said sadly.

"Uh-huh…" Flandre replied in an equally saddened tone.

"Well…Good luck with your big adventure…I…I hope you'll visit again someday…"

"We will!" Koishi said happily.

Kyouko's eyes began to fill with tears, and her mouth began to quiver. "I'm…I'm gonna miss you guys…" she said in an almost inaudible voice.

Kogasa quickly began to comfort her friend, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Safe travels you three, I hope your journey is full of…surprises." She said with a small smirk.

"Well, we had best get going before it gets too dark out…Ready to go you two?" Meiling asked.

"Yep!" Koishi and Flandre replied together energetically.

"So long everyone! I hope we meet again one day!" Meiling said cheerfully before beginning the journey back to the human village along with her two companions.

"Bye Kyouko! Bye Mamy! Bye Cap'n Murasa! Bye Ms. Byakuren! Bye Ms. Shou! Ummmm…Bye everyone else!" Flandre said happily as she waved goodbye to them vigorously along with Koishi.

Every temple resident waved back to the three happily, with tears trickling down Kyouko's face as she did so. The only resident who didn't bother to return the gesture was Nue, who just stared at the three indifferently with her arms crossed as they walked down the path that leads down toward the human village. The three soon disappeared out of sight and into the sunset, as they continued their journey across Gensokyo.

* * *

**A/N: Well...This chapter came out a bit faster then I honestly expected it to...Not that it's a bad thing of course. I'm glad I finally got this whole Myouren temple story done, I've been dying to finish it. It was a pretty fun story arc to write though, especially since it brought the story's first real violent scenes... It was also where I think the reviews finally started to come in coincidentally...Eh, I guess people like loli on loli violence. :P I sure know I do...**

**Ahem, joking aside, I really appreciate the recent amount of reviews given to this story! It's a real morale booster for me! I hope you continue to enjoy this here story. Although, I hope you won't be too broken up if I took a break from writing this a bit...There's a few other hobbies I'd like to get back to. Though I won't leave writing this alone for too long...  
**

**Well, I'd honestly love to keep rambling on about more nonsense, but I'll stop this note here. Hope to see you next time!  
**


	19. Chapter 19: The wicked

Gensokyo was surprisingly peaceful in its later hours of the day, with humans turning in from their respective jobs for the day and joining their families back at their homes in the village, causing the settlement to quiet down from its earlier thriving amount of activity. The only ones still wandering about the town was late night shoppers, and a few of the more peaceful youkai of Gensokyo.

The youkai of the land did the exact opposite, as nocturnal youkai awakened from their slumber and began to search for any humans foolish enough to be out at this hour and make a meal out of them. Fortunately for the trio of travelers who were still wandering about the land at this time weren't human. The three kept on traveling, with no exact destination in mind yet, using the light from both the stars and moon to keep themselves from falling astray from the path they followed through the thick forest they were currently traversing.

Flandre and Koishi traveled ahead their other companion, looking at their surroundings with awe that only a child would feel from such a sight. Meiling slowly trudged behind the pair, as she carried all of the group's belongings. Her heavy breathing could be heard by her two childish traveling companions. When she was offered to take some of her load by Flandre and Koishi, she refused their help, insisting that she could do it herself with a cheerful smile on her face. The two just shrugged and kept on walking at the same pace as they had before, only slowing down to allow Meiling to catch up with the two of them.

"Wow…Look at how bright the stars are…" Flandre said as she gazed up at the star peppered sky with wonderment, "It's so pretty…"

At her comment, Koishi looked up to the sky as well with a similar expression as Flandre. "Ooh! You're right Flan-Chan! It really is pretty!"

"Look how pretty it is China! Isn't it beautiful?" Flandre called back to Meiling, who had once again slipped behind the group.

Meiling took a quick glance at the sky before returning her gaze back to the road, "Eh, nothing I haven't seen before…" she said quietly between heavy breaths of air as drops of sweat trickled down her face.

"That's such a weak reaction China!" Koishi shouted to the gatekeeper, "Where's your sense of wonder silly?"

"Oh I don't know…I must have misplaced it…" Meiling replied, snickering lightly at her own joke.

Koishi seemed to take her joke quite seriously, if her facial expression were any indication. With her mouth agape and her eyes wide. "M-Misplaced! How could you lose something so important China! How are you supposed to enjoy anything in life without your sense of wonder?"

Meiling shrugged, "I suppose I'll just have to live life without it now, won't I?"

"That's a horrible attitude to have China! I can't let you miss out on the wonders of life! Don't worry; I'll share my sense of wonder with you! That way your life won't be so bland and boring like it has been!"

"Hey! My life is not bland and boring! I'll have you know I've led quite an exciting and adventurous life!" Meiling retorted.

Flandre couldn't help but laugh at both of her friend's silliness. Unintentionally breaking up the two's light hearted argument in the process. Flandre was happy that Koishi had recovered from her depressed state; you wouldn't have been able to tell that the girl had been so melancholic just a few hours earlier with the way she was smiling now.

"Why are you laughing Flanny?" Koishi asked the giggling vampire with curiosity. "Ooh, did imagine China in her underwear?"

"Hey! That isn't funny! I've been told I'm quite good looking!" Meiling called from behind the pair, causing Koishi to join Flandre in her laughter. "It's true…" the gatekeeper muttered to herself as she began to pick up her pace so she wouldn't fall too far behind her companions.

The pair's laughter was cut off after the two leading the group tripped on something lying in the middle of the road that the two didn't notice in their laughter. The pair of youkai plummeted to the ground, falling on the dirt path painfully.

"Ouchie…Who leaves their things in a middle of a road…big meanies…" Flandre mumbled to herself as she slowly pushed herself off of the ground. The vampire quickly readjusted her mobcap before turning her attention to what she had tripped on. Surprisingly enough, she found that what she had tripped on was a person.

"Owwwwww…" the person Flandre and Koishi had tripped upon moaned quietly. She lied on the ground motionlessly as she stared up at the sky with a blank expression; she appeared to be taking a particular interest in the moon, as she her eyes remained focused directly on the planet. The group of three quickly exchanged puzzled glances before turning their attention back to the strange girl before them.

The girl was quite pale looking, almost deathly so. Her hair was a greyish hue of blue, and wore a purple hat that had a star pinned to it; similar to the one Meiling was wearing. Oddly, she had a thin slip of paper stuck to her forehead; it reminded Meiling of the ofuda charms that the Hakurei shrine maiden was fond of using. The strange woman also wore a red Chinese styled shirt that had oddly baggy sleeves, and a black skirt. She held her arms out in front of her for some reason, making her look out right silly. The gatekeeper quickly identified her as a Jiang Shi, an undead creature that originated from her homeland.

The lady slowly began to lift herself up from the ground using only her legs amazingly enough, with her arms staying firmly in place in front of her. She stiffly began to turn to the three before her, giving each of them a deadpan expression before speaking. "…You see someone hit me?" she asked monotonously, cocking her head slightly to the side as she looked to the three for an answer.

"Noooooooooo…" Koishi replied, "But we did trip on you. It's not a good idea to lie in the middle of the road like that; someone might think you're road kill!"

"…What's road kill?" the pale stranger asked, looking utterly clueless.

"It's when an animal gets squished on a road!" Flandre answered cheerfully.

"…Oh…Hey, do you have any spare souls…? I'm really hungry…"

"I don't think so…Hey China! Do we have any spare souls?" Flandre asked, looking to the gatekeeper longingly for an answer.

"No." Meiling replied firmly as she glared at the peculiar stranger before them warily.

"Oh…Okay! Sorry, China says we don't have any spare souls…"

At her response, the stranger began to moan rather loudly, causing the three wince from the sudden eruption of noise. "Ohhhhhhhh…I'm so hungry…" she whined, "Oh master Seiga…where's dinner…?"

Meiling felt like she had heard that name before…but she couldn't quite remember where she had heard it from… She quickly disregarded the name and returned her attention to the moping stranger before them.

"Look…Miss…?"

"I'm not Miss…I'm Yoshika…" the sulking girl corrected.

"Right…Yoshika, we don't have anything that you Jiang Shi eat, so why not just be on your way?"

"…Because…Master told me to wait here for someone and take them to her…I can't let the master down and disobey her…" Yoshika replied monotonously.

"Well how long ago was that?"

Yoshika paused for a few moments, as if trying to formulate an answer to a particularly difficult riddle. "…About…seven days…"

"Seven days? That's a really long time to lie on the ground for!" Koishi said with amazement, clapping her hands to her face as if to emphasize her surprise.

"…Master has been gone longer than that before…She always returns though…Always…"

"She doesn't sound like a very good boss if she just leaves you all by yourself for so long!" Flandre said with a hint of outrage in her voice.

"…Master is a great master…she's just busy…busy and forgetful…Master is a great master…"

"Why don't we help you find her then?" Koishi asked the Jiang Shi cheerfully, looking up to the taller woman with a bright smile on her face.

"Help me find master…?" Yoshika asked with a confused look on her face.

"Yeah! Come with us! We'll find that boss of yours in no time!" Koishi said happily, offering her hand to the Jiang Shi. "Right Flanny?"

"Yeah! Come on! You shouldn't be sitting out here all by yourself!" Flandre agreed, urging the Jiang Shi to join them.

"But master said to wait here…"

"Well…What if she forgot to tell you to wait here…and she's really worried because she can't find you?" Flandre asked with a sly smile on her face.

"Wh-What…? I don't want to worry master!" Yoshika cried with concern, with her face looking pained with guilt.

"Then we better find her then, huh?" Koishi asked with an equally cunning smile as Flandre's.

Yoshika nodded vigorously to answer, looking completely concerned only with her master's wellbeing and nothing else. Meiling on the other hand, looked completely awestruck at her companion's cleverness; she never took them as being skilled at the art of deception. They seemed…too innocent to be good at such things.

"You don't mind if she comes along, do you China?" Flandre asked the gatekeeper, looking up towards her taller friend with large pleading eyes.

"Not at all. So long as she doesn't cause us any trouble, I won't object to her coming along." Meiling replied.

Flandre began to jump in place happily from her answer, causing her wing crystals to jingle from the action. "Thanks China! You're the best!" the little vampire then ran back to Koishi and Yoshika happily to inform them the good news. Meiling couldn't help but smile at her friend's great amount of excitement, as she began to walk up to the group and join them.

The group continued to traverse the forest, now with Yoshika in tow. The Jiang Shi walked in an odd fashion; she never once bent her knees in her steps, with her legs remaining completely stiff as she walked along with the group, despite this, Yoshika never once fell behind the group. Her arms were also kept in front of her at all times, looking just as rigid as her legs were, the girl was one of the more peculiar people the trio have met in their journeys…

"Hey Yoshika?" Flandre said, breaking a momentary silence between the four of them.

"Hmmmmmm…?"

"Why do you keep your arms hanging out like that?" Flandre asked while pointing to Yoshika's arms, which remained as stiff as a board while her hands dangled freely from them.

"Oh…Master said I have ummmm…R…R-rig…Rigor…Mo…rtis…She said I have rigor mortis..." Yoshika struggled to pronounce, looking relieved that she had completed the word.

"Oh…What's rigor mortis?"

"Erm…I forget…" Yoshika replied sheepishly.

Luckily Meiling had the answer to the question, "Rigor mortis is when your limbs become stiff and hard to move, it occurs in corpses after about after three or four hours after death. It's not surprising that you have it, Yoshika, you are a reanimated corpse after all…" Meiling said in a rather informative fashion.

"Wow! You're smart China!" Koishi said enthusiastically at Meiling's display of knowledge. The young satori looked very impressed by her short explanation.

"Ah shucks, I'm not that smart…" Meiling said modestly, scratching the back of her head as she spoke. "Anyways…I could probably fix that for you, Yoshika. It wouldn't take long, I'd just have to snap your arms a bit and they should work as good as new."

Yoshika didn't seem pleased by the prospect, and her skin seemed to turn into an even paler shade of white than usual. "No, no, no, no…" Yoshika moaned as she shook her head vigorously, an impressive feat considering how stiff the rest of her body was.

"Why not?" Meiling asked, sounding more curious than insulted if anything.

"Master says I'm perfect just the way I am…If master thinks I'm perfect, then I am…" Yoshika answered, with her eyes downcast.

At the mentioning, Meiling's thoughts returned to wondering about just who this master of Yoshika's was. She knew she had heard the name Seiga somewhere before…she just couldn't put her finger on it…

Soon enough the small group reached a small clearing in the forest, allowing the light from the moon to be seen completely without any tree branches to block their view of the orb. It was a clear night, allowing many stars to be seen. Before the group could take in the full sight of the sky they were only able to see glimpses of in the forest.

The ground in the immediate area began to shake lightly abruptly. Meiling gave the ground a wary look before a small hole appeared right in front of her and without any sort of warning a woman's head quickly popped out of it. "Yo!"

The sudden appearance of the woman surprised Meiling, causing her to almost fall over from the shock. Meiling recovered from her initial shock and began to get a better look at the woman who had come out of the hole. The woman had blue eyes and hair equally as blue that was done into two hair loops. As the woman slowly lifted herself out of the hole she had popped out of, Meiling was able to see her clothing more clearly. She wore a light blue dress with a white and blue vest that had several Chinese patterns on it, reminding the gatekeeper of her homeland.

The strange woman put a golden hair pin into her hair as she got up from the ground, dusting dirt off from her dress as she got on her feet. She suddenly gasped in surprise as she took notice of the sole Jiang Shi among the group, "Yoshika!" she cried as she ran up to her.

In turn, Yoshika cried, "Master!"

The two quickly went to one another, with Yoshika's master hugging her with a motherly smile on her face as she did so. "Oh my little Yoshika-poo, I'm so relieved to see that you're doing well!" The woman said cheerfully as she lightly stroked the jiang shi on her back. "Oh! And you even did as I asked and brought the ones I wanted to speak with! Such a good girl you are!" she complemented as she ruffled the girl's hair, and gave her a small kiss on the cheek.

Yoshika looked oblivious that she had accomplished any task, but seemed to appreciate the affection her master gave her. For the first time since the three had encountered the Jiang Shi, Yoshika's face filled with a color as she blushed from her master's actions, growing a big grin on her face.

"Excuse me? What did you say?" Meiling asked with a stern expression, interrupting the pair's heartwarming reunion.

Yoshika's master backed out from the hug with the Jiang Shi and turned her attention to the gatekeeper, "Oh how rude of me! I forgot my manners after I saw my adorable wittle Yoshika…" she said as she lightly pinched the Jiang Shi in question's cheek, "I'm Seiga Kaku, a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ms. Meiling." She held her hand out to the Chinese gatekeeper with a wide smile on her face. Meiling took it and shook it warily.

"Now, how exactly do you know my name, Ms. Kaku? I don't remember introducing myself." Meiling questioned, giving Seiga an untrusting look.

Seiga ignored the question and turned her attention back to her minion, "Oh Yoshika dear? Would you mind taking your new friends aside for the moment? Ms. Meiling and I need to discuss some grown-up issues~." She said sweetly.

"Huh…? Alright master…" Yoshika replied sadly, going off to the edge of the clearing along with Flandre and Koishi, leaving Seiga and Meiling alone.

"Spill it." Meiling growled, crossing her arms across her chest as she glared at the woman, once the three were out of earshot.

"I'll be candid with you, Ms. Meiling. I find you and your companions to be quite interesting, some of the most interesting youkai I've seen in quite some time…" Seiga began.

"Interesting how?" Meiling cut off, with a scowl planted on her usually cheerful face.

"Oh don't play dumb with me, Ms. Meiling! I know all about that little bounty…" Seiga laughed, putting an arm around Meiling's shoulder as if they were old friends. Meiling quickly shook the hermit's arm off, Seiga mocked disappointment at the rejection, while barely trying to suppress a smile.

"So you're just like the ones from Eientei then. Can't resist the temptation of some easy money?"

Seiga just laughed, "Oh heavens no! Material things don't interest me at all, I just wanted to speak with you…I'm not like those Lunarians at all. I don't lose sight of my morals over some petty cash…It's truly amazing what money will do to mortals, isn't it? Or should I say immortals? Even I was a little shocked at what things they did just to try and catch your pretty little vampire, I mean goodness, senseless destruction of a graveyard, violence against an unrelated party, and emotionally traumatizing that little satori? Tsk, tsk…"

"Wait…What do you mean? Traumatizing Koishi? I knew she was in a bad mood after the fight but…"

"Oh yes…That moon doctor sure can be quite nasty if she really wants something…I suppose the same could be said for the princess as well. I must say, I never took those two as the violent type, but I suppose when given the right motivation, even the most peaceful of beings will sacrifice others on the altar of their ambition…" Seiga's smile slowly grew bigger and bigger as she continued to speak. Her grin began to unnerve Meiling, something about this woman…just wasn't right.

"Wait just a moment here…I understand that attack on the temple has been the talk of the town, and those Tengu have already started writing stories about it…but tell me this, Ms. Kaku, how would you know that Eirin had traumatized Koishi? Unless you were there…"

"Oh dear me! I've been caught!" Seiga said mockingly.

"How long…" Meiling growled.

"Pardon?"

"How long have you been following us!?" Meiling roared. Seiga didn't even so much as flinch at her outburst, and managed to keep her cool.

The other three within the vicinity didn't seem to notice her booming voice, as they continued to play with one another. Both Flandre and Koishi swung by Yoshika's arms, giggling happily as they did so. Yoshika also seemed to be enjoying herself, regardless of the vampire and satori that were using her as a jungle-gym.

"To be honest, my memory is a little fuzzy…" Seiga scratched her head in thought, "I believe I began following you around the time you met that doll maker…"

"Wh…What? For that long?" Meiling asked in disbelief.

"Well, it wasn't like I followed you twenty-four seven…I do have a life you know, Ms. Meiling…" Seiga replied, taking a sudden interest in her finger nails, which looked almost flawless. "I mean, I didn't follow you to the Sanzu River, such a dreadfully dull and depressing place…Plus I wasn't exactly a fan of seeing a shinigami…or the Yama for that matter. Really, you should take other people into consideration next time you decide to go somewhere..."

"Well excuse me! Next time we'll go somewhere more convenient for you!" Meiling shouted back. Never had the gatekeeper ever met such an infuriating person, it took all of her will power not to punch her in her smug face right there and then.

At the hermit's mentioning of the Sanzu River, Meiling finally realized why this hermit was so familiar to her, and where she had heard of her. "Wait a minute…You're that hermit that caused all of that trouble at the kappa's place a few months ago with that tower of water…the Yama was after you…You're the that hermit that managed to escape death…You're the wicked hermit…"

"Oh my, it'd seem my reputation has grown quite handsomely in my short time in this land…" Seiga muttered to herself.

"This conversation is over. If you continue to follow us, I'll do the job that the tower failed to do. Am I clear?" Meiling said viciously.

"Crystal!" Seiga replied cheerfully, with a large beaming smile on her face.

"Flandre, Koishi, say goodbye to Yoshika. We're leaving…" Meiling said to the playing pair of youkai.

Both groaned sadly that their fun was coming to an end. Flandre and Koishi swung off from Yoshika's arms. "Sorry Yoshika…we gotta go…" Koishi grumbled sadly.

Yoshika seemed to be just as saddened as Koishi and Flandre, "Ohhhhhhh…I hope we see each other again..." Yoshika said in her monotone voice, though her disappointment was evident by the frown on her face.

"I hope we see each other again sometime…" Flandre said to the Jiang Shi. "Take care…"

Meiling then began to lead her two companions along, away from the hermit and her undead minion. The gatekeeper took one last angry look at the hermit, who was giving her a pleasant smile in return. She waved them goodbye as the three of them left the clearing.

"It was nice talking to you, Ms. Meiling! I hope we may do this again sometime! Take care, Gensokyo can be quite a dangerous place!" she called to the three before disappearing into the thick forest. Once the three were out of ear shot, Seiga faced her loyal disciple. "Oh Yoshika darling, I have a little task for you to do for me…"

"What is it master? I'll do anything for you master…Anything." Yoshika answered, looking eager to set out and do Seiga's bidding at the best of her ability.

"So eager! That's my adorable little Jiang Shi…" Seiga began to ruffle her hair adoringly, causing Yoshika's smile to grow ever bigger. "Now Yoshika, you know those people we just met?"

"Yes, of course master!"

"I want you to attack them." Seiga said casually, with her smile unwavering as she gave the command.

"Huh? But master…They were nice to me…"

"I know dear, but regardless I want you to do as I ask…Just rough them up a bit! Just a friendly little battle, nothing too gruesome! Besides, Ms. Meiling was just telling me how much she would love a good duel with someone…especially a strong Jiang Shi like you…It'll be a nice big surprise for her!"

"Are you sure master…?"

"Of course I'm sure! Ms. Meiling was absolutely hankering for a good battle! Just do this for me darling, you wouldn't want to disappoint Master Seiga, would you…?" Seiga asked as she pouted sadly at her servant.

Yoshika gasped in surprise, "No, no, no! I don't want to disappoint you Master!" Yoshika cried. "I'll do just as you told me to master!"

"Such a good girl! Here's a little something for good luck…" Seiga bent down and kissed Yoshika on her forehead, causing the former to grin happily. "Now go give Ms. Meiling a good fight! I'll be rooting for you in the sidelines!"

"Yes master! I'll make you proud!" Yoshika responded loyally, before running off after the three, determined to follow her master's orders.

"Oh silly Yoshika…I'm already proud of you…" Seiga muttered to herself as her minion eagerly trampled through the forest in hot pursuit of her target. "Now…Let's see how you handle this, Ms. Meiling...don't disappoint me now…" Seiga's soon grew a great big smile on her face as she slowly began to walk out of the clearing, and into the darkness of the night to observe the battle that would soon unfold.

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**A/N: And after a short break, here we are with chapter nineteen! :P Just one more chapter til I hit the big 'ol number twenty! I hope you enjoyed this chapter despite its somewhat short length...Well, I suppose there have been shorter chapters in this story...eh. Personally, I loved writing Seiga's character. After Kyouko and Mamizou, she's my favorite TD character.**

**Just as a small note, the water tower thing that Meiling mentions is a reference to the events of chapter twelve of the official TouHou manga work, Wild and Horned Hermit. So...Yeah. Spoilers.  
**

**Anyways, sorry to say, but the next chapter will be a while before I post it...I'm kind of juggling to stories right now, and want to work on that one as well. Hopefully you'll enjoy that story as well. Anyways, until next time.  
**


	20. Chapter 20: Night of the Undead

"I wanted to play with Yoshika more…why did we have to do so early China?" Flandre whined as she looked towards Meiling with a questioning look.

"Yeah...You big stick in the mud…" Koishi muttered in agreement as she looked towards the ground sadly.

Meiling let out an aggravated sigh, massaging her temples as she tried to think of an explanation the two childish youkai girls would understand. "Let me put it this way you two…Yoshika's master, Seiga Kaku, isn't someone to be trusted or someone you'd want to call a friend. She uses others for her gain; she isn't someone I want either of you to be around." She said to the two. But both Flandre and Koishi looked befuddled by her explanation.

"So…Seiga is a naughty lady?" Flandre asked.

"Urrr…Yes, she is a naughty person." Meiling confirmed. Just thinking of the wicked hermit renewed Meiling's rage and hatred towards her. She had only spoken with Seiga for a few minutes, and the gatekeeper already detested her entire being. She dearly hoped their paths would never cross again.

"How's she naughty?" Koishi asked curiously, looking for clarification about the hermit's misdeeds.

Meiling sighed sadly; she didn't want to reveal to the pair the things Seiga Kaku has done in her short time in Gensokyo. Seiga hadn't even resurfaced as a hermit until recently, and she has already become the object of quite a few people's contempt. It was rumored that even the human saint Miko Toyosatomimi didn't see her as an ally of any sort, regardless of the fact that Seiga had been one of the beings to guard the mausoleum she had rested within until her resurrection was completed. Meiling was reluctant to reveal the sins of the hermit, but she finally decided that it was best to tell the truth and leave no doubt in their minds that Seiga Kaku was not a person that could be trusted.

"Well…For one, she abandoned her family for the life of a hermit, and did so without a twinge of guilt…Someone who has no remorse for deceiving her family and friends is already someone who you should be wary of…and that's not even the worst thing she's done." Meiling shuddered at the thought of what she had heard the hermit do in her lifetime. She took a moment to clear her mind before continuing her explanation, "She's also broken into people's homes under the shadow of night and stolen their possessions just to sell them off just because she finds it to be humorous."

"But Mary does that too, is she a bad person too?" Flandre asked innocent curiosity.

Despite Marisa's annoying quality to take anything and everything she sees from just about anyone in Gensokyo, she wasn't as bad as Seiga. The witch does make good on her word, she's assured the owners of the belongings she's stolen from several times that she's only 'borrowing' their possesions, and are welcome to retake them once she's succumbed to death. Meiling couldn't find any holes to poke into her reasoning, as she hasn't known her to steal anything from her fellow humans, only plundering the homes of youkai. Youkai who would easily outlive her short mortal lifespan. It was somewhat frustrating, for someone to have such a simple excuse yet not being able to argue against it.

"No, Marisa could help to not steal every shiny object she sees, but she isn't as bad as Seiga. Seiga's much worse…much, much worse." Meiling replied.

"Like what?" Koishi questioned.

Meiling was hoping to avoid telling the two the worst crime she had known Seiga to have commit, but she suspected it was the only way the two would be convinced of Seiga's nature. "She did one of the most unforgiveable crimes you could ever commit…she brought back the deceased." Meiling said, as Flandre and Koishi took on looks of mild surprise. "She disturbed the eternal rest of an innocent person, and is using her body and soul only to further her own goals…it's one of the most despicable things anyone could ever do. It's little wonder the Yama is after her head."

"You mean that grumpy green haired lady with the funny hat?" Flandre asked, Meiling recognized the description of that of Shikeiki Yamaxanadu and simply nodded in response. Meiling couldn't help but feel relieved that the time they had interacted with the judge was brief, if Komachi's words held any truth in them; they had narrowly dodged one long lecture. "But she didn't seem like the type of person to go around kyuuing people…"

"Huh? Grumpy green haired lady with a funny hat? Kyuuing? I'm confused…" Koshi said, looking a little lost in the conversation.

"Never mind Koishi, Flandre was just talking about someone we very briefly met before you joined our little group here. By kyuuing, she means destroying, or killing people." Meiling explained. Koishi put the pieces together and looked content with her explanation. "Anyways, back at the subject at hand…the Yama isn't the type of person to just go around killing any random person she pleases; she has a reason for ending the lives of those she wants dead. Seiga has earned the Yama's wrath, and then some…"

"Oh…well, what kind of reasons?" Flandre asked, with Koishi looking to be wondering the answer to that question as well.

The gatekeeper was beginning to believe she would end up explaining a lot things to the pair before she actually got around to finally getting to the main point. "Well, the main reason is that humans try to outlive their lifespans, and become hermits. Being a hermit is essentially the same as trying to cheat death, and the Yama looks down upon that, it goes against the laws of nature. So the Yamas will send something to end their lives if they believe a hermit is living much longer than they should be."

"Does that mean all hermits are bad people then?" Koishi asked, causing Meiling to internally groan at how long an originally short and simple explanation was drawing out to be from all the questions she was receiving.

"No, just because someone has decided to follow the path of a hermit, doesn't mean they're morally bad people. Now getting back to the main point here…Seiga brought back Yoshika from death, turning her into a Jiang Shi. Yoshika's life ended, she should have crossed over the Sanzu, and had the Yama decide her fate. But Seiga disrupted this flow of nature, and resurrected her from beyond the grave. Do you now see why she's someone I don't want you two being associated with?"

Flandre and Koishi nodded, letting the revelation sink in as they continued to travel onwards in silence. A few moments passed before anyone dared to speak again, with the silence finally being disrupted by Koishi.

"China, is Yoshika a bad person for being friends with Seiga?" she asked, looking to Meiling with large curious eyes for an answer.

"Of course not. She's just a victim of Seiga's selfishness." Meiling answered.

"Oh…Can we see her again sometime then?" the satori asked.

Meiling smiled and replied, "I don't see why not."

Both Flandre and Koishi were overjoyed by her answer as both literally jumped for joy, giggling happily. Meiling was relieved that this subject was done and over with, just talking about the hermit made her feel disgusted. Now all she would have to worry about is exploring Gensokyo with Flandre and Koishi, and protecting them from any potential bounty hunters looking to collect the large sum of money that was placed on their heads. Luckily enough the only ones they've had to deal with due to the bounty were the Lunarians of Eientei, with any luck, they would remain as their only hindrance in this adventure…though considering her small amount of luck thus far, she wasn't going to hold her breath.

The trio eventually made it out of the thick woods they had been traversing through, and were now out in the open fields of Gensokyo. Though to their misfortune, there was a heavy fog there to meet them. The darkness of night and the thickness of fog served to conceal almost everything from their line of sight. The only landmark that the fog failed to hide was Youkai Mountain, the largest mountain within Gensokyo and the home to both the Kappa and Tengu.

"Hrmmmmm…This is some thick fog…I can hardly see a thing…" Meiling muttered to herself as she began to dig through her belongings. "Oh where is that old thing…Aha! There it is!" She succeeded to find what she was searching for and quickly pulled out a Chinese styled lantern. It looked to be quite old, as it had several marks on it, and the bright crimson color it once was had begun to fade.

Meiling began to try lighting it, but soon found that she had nothing to start a fire with. Meiling groaned in frustration as the realization hit her. "What's wrong China?" Flandre asked her frustrated companion, as the colorful crystals that hung from her wings glowed lightly, shedding a little light through the darkness, just as they had done during the pair's adventure to the Sanzu River.

"It's nothing; it's just that I seem to have lost the matches I brought along. I must have forgotten them back at Myouren Temple…" Meiling replied, "It's not a huge issue, we'll just be having a rougher time getting through this fog now…"

"Oh…Let me light it China! I'll make it nice and bright!" Flandre exclaimed happily.

Meiling looked at her with obvious confusion, "And how will you be doing that?"

"Just hold on for a second and I'll show you silly!" Flandre replied with her usual enthusiasm, looking excited to assist her.

"Well alright then…" Meiling said quietly as she began to wait for whatever Flandre had in mind to light the lantern.

Flandre held her hand out before the lantern, squinting her eyes as she focused solely on the badly beaten lantern. Her hand slowly began to glow a light hue of red, as the small vampire began to clench her hand. As her hand formed a fist, a small burst of red light was seen, accompanied by a small popping noise. Meiling examined her lantern with surprise as she found that it was now lit.

"Wow! I never realized you could do that with your power Flandre! Great job!" Meiling exclaimed in excitement.

"Ooooooooohhhhhhhhh…That was really pretty Flanny! I wish I could do that..." Koishi said with awe, looking at the small flame within the lantern with wonder.

"Heehee, thanks…it was nothing special though…" Flandre replied, looking happy from the compliments she was receiving from the two of them.

"Well, let's get going now you two, I'd like to find a nice place to set up camp for the night." Meiling said as she began to turn back towards the path, only to knock into someone as soon as she began to continue along the beaten path. Meiling fell flat on her backside, groaning in pain as she rubbed her sore behind. "Oh, sorry about that…some fog out, eh?" Meiling said to the stranger as she got up from the ground, and began to dust herself off. The gatekeeper gasped as she saw the familiar, deathly pale face from earlier. Yoshika stood before her, with her arms still hanging out in front of her. Her eyes seemed to be devoid of any of what little life were in them before, as she simply stared blankly at the three of them.

"Yoshika!" Flandre and Koishi cried together in unison, completely oblivious to the Jiang Shi's change in liveliness. The only sign that she was actually alive was the almost rhythmic light breaths of air she took.

Meiling, unlike her two companions wasn't happy to see her; rather she was quite unhinged by her sudden appearance. "Y-Yoshika…What a surprise…What are you doing out here?" Meiling asked as she nervously stared at the animated corpse. Though Meiling hadn't known Yoshika for more than few minutes, she felt that something was…off about her.

Yoshika didn't answer; she kept standing stiffly in place. Not moving a muscle as her eyes remained blankly focused on the group before her. "Hey, what're you staring at Yoshika? Why aren't you saying anything?" Flandre asked as she stared back into her eyes, slightly tilting her head in curiosity.

Koishi began to tentatively poke her on the face, yet still received no response. "I think she's sleeping…"

"I think we should keep moving you two…I'm starting to feel a little uneasy here…" Meiling said as she looked at her surroundings cautiously, fearing that something bad may occur if they decided to linger in the area.

"Huh? What're you talking about China?" Koishi asked as she continued to poke Yoshika's face, turning away from the corpse to face Meiling. As she faced away from Yoshika, her jaw slowly began to open. Meiling gasped and quickly pulled the pair away from the Jiang Shi just as she snapped her jaw closed with great force, with Koishi's finger nearly being crushed by her powerful maw.

"That's what I'm talking about…" Meiling muttered. She slowly pulled the two of them behind her, taking up a defensive stance against the Jiang Shi. Meiling quickly jabbed a finger towards the Jiang Shi, "If you don't leave right now, I will use force to remove you." Meiling warned.

"I can't…I can't disappoint Master Seiga…" Yoshika muttered sadly, her eyes downcast in apparent sadness.

"Wait, Seiga? What about her?"

"Master Seiga told me to fight you…I can't disappoint her…not the master…" Yoshika mumbled, ignoring the question. "Master said I can eat the soul of anyone I beat…and I'm hungry…" she stated, licking her lips as she looked at a Meiling longingly.

Meiling turned pale at her last sentence, becoming unnerved by both Yoshika's words and the odd grin she was displaying, which revealed her sharp white row of teeth. Meiling took a deep breath of air to calm herself, "Flandre, Koishi, step back. I'll handle this." She commanded.

"B-But China! What if you get hurt!?" Flandre cried with concern.

"Flandre, do as I say." Meiling said sternly, "I'll be fine. I'll defeat Yoshika and come back safe, I promise." Meiling reassured, giving her a warm smile and a confident grin.

"Well…okay…But be careful!"

"And don't beat Yoshika up too much!" Koishi added as both she and Flandre took roost on top of a nearby tree to spectate the fight.

"I'll try to go easy on her, but I can't promise anything…"

Meiling sighed in relief as she saw the two of them retreat to a safe distance, she no longer had to worry about them getting injured in the crossfire of the inevitable fight that was about to occur. Though she was confident that both Flandre and Koishi could easily handle Yoshika by themselves considering the number they had done on the lunarians, but she felt that it was her job as a guard to protect. Even if the ones she protected didn't need her protection.

"I am Hong Meiling, gate guard of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and I shall defeat you!" Meiling proclaimed, with her fist beginning to glow with a rainbow colored aura. She let out a mighty battle cry as she charged towards her opponent.

Meiling thrust her chi powered fist right at Yoshika, but surprisingly, the Jiang Shi managed to avoid what would have been a devastating blow by ducking backwards. Meiling then sent a low kick aimed at the Jiang Shi's knees, causing her opponent to yelp as she fell to the ground. The gatekeeper kept her momentum against Yoshika going, as she jumped gracefully in the air, doing several flips in the air as she strengthened her fist with chi once again, preparing to send a downward punch right into the fallen Jiang Shi's gut.

But just as Meiling was about to land her attack, Yoshika jumped up from the ground, avoiding Meiling's attack all together. A small, fist sized crater formed on the ground as Meiling's fist pounded into the ground, sending small clumps of dirt to go flying in all directions from the impact.

Meiling growled in frustration as the Jiang Shi landed back on to the ground, not looking at all fazed by the attacks Meiling had sent her way. Yoshika slumped her body over, with drool dripping down from her mouth as she stared at Meiling. Meiling raised her guard as Yoshika continued to stare at her. The look Yoshika was giving her combined with the atmosphere was beginning to make the gatekeeper feel uneasy…

Without warning, Yoshika began a mad dash towards Meiling, with her arms hanging stiffly at her sides as she rushed at her. Meiling tried to avoid her on coming charge, but Yoshika's speed was too great for her. The undead corpse crashed right into her, pinning the gatekeeper down onto the ground.

Meiling flailed around under the Jiang Shi's grip, trying to escape from her clutches, but it was to no avail. Yoshika looked down at the youkai she kept pinned to the ground curiously as she struggled to free herself. "Why're you struggling…?" Yoshika asked as she simply observed Meiling's unsuccessful attempts to loosen her hold, "All I want is a little taste of your soul…just a little itty-bitty bite…don't be so greedy with your soul…I'm really hungry…Now just hold still…" Yoshika slowly opened her jaw, giving Meiling a great view of her row of razor sharp teeth, and the slivers of flesh still stuck between them. Seiga obviously didn't assist her minion with her dental care…

Meiling twitched her nose as the smell of Yoshika's rancid breath entered her nose, causing small tears to form in her eyes from the stench. It smelled of blood and human flesh. The scent combined with the drops of saliva that dripped from her mouth and onto her completely disgusted Meiling, strengthening her resolve to if anything, get away from that horrible scent.

Meiling kicked Yoshika up off from her using both of her feet, causing the undead girl to soar in the air for a short moment before landing back on the ground with a soft thud. Meiling gasped for air, that situation was much too close for comfort. If Yoshika had managed to even take a single bite out of her, she would have become a Jiang Shi and found herself being Seiga's undead minion…just the thought chilled Meiling to her core.

Yoshika slowly got up from the ground, with her rigid arms looking like they were trying to move, but were stuck in the same position as they had been since meeting the Jiang Shi. "Ouchie…That was mean Meiling…All I wanted was a little taste…no need to be so rough and beat me up…" Yoshika whined, her expression looking pained.

"I don't want to hurt you Yoshika, but if you continue to keep attacking, I won't be going easy on you." Meiling warned.

"B-But Master said…Master said to fight Meiling…I can't disobey Master…Master is all I have in the world…I-I can't fail her!" Yoshika cried, beginning another attack against Meiling as she ran towards the gatekeeper at great speed, speeds that by all rights shouldn't have been possible for a Jiang Shi.

Yoshika twisted her body to the right, smacking Meiling in the face with both of her arms. The strength and momentum behind the attack managed to cause Meiling to stumble backwards and draw blood. Meiling gingerly touched the wound Yoshika had given her to the face, wiping the blood off from her lips.

Keeping her attack up, Yoshika began to chase after Meiling once more, this time attempting to bite Meiling with her sharp teeth. Meiling jumped away from the Jiang Shi gracefully to avoid the contagious bite Yoshika attempted to infect her with.

Just as she landed though, Yoshika was there to meet her, sending a powerful blow down to her head, following up with a stiff kick to her gut. Meiling staggered back from the attack, with blood dripping from her forehead the Jiang Shi's strike.

Meiling's breath began to grow heavier as she burned up most of her energy trying to avoid Yoshika's attacks…she couldn't believe she was beginning to tire out already…as a youkai, she should be able to keep up a fight like this for at least a full week…it felt almost as if the very life was being sucked out of her…

Though Yoshika's attacks may have been slow and sluggish, each time she managed land a hit on her, it was like being struck by an oncoming train. At this rate, she would run out of energy and wouldn't even be able to avoid her attacks, much less put up a fight… Even more disheartening was that Yoshika looked like she hasn't even broken a sweat, it didn't even appear that the fight had tired her out at all…if anything it looked like she had even more energy than she originally had before the fight even started… Things weren't looking good her…

"Man…China looks like she's taking a beating…" Koishi said nervously as she watched the fight closely.

"She'll win! China's the toughest person I know! Yoshika doesn't stand a chance!" Flandre said reassuringly.

"Are you so certain about that, child?"

"Huh?"

Flandre turned to her side, gasping in surprise to find that Seiga was sitting next to her. The hermit was idly spectating the battle with a smug expression on her face, particularly keeping her eyes focused on the weakened Meiling. Koishi looked equally surprised by the hermit's appearance, as she stared at her with a bewildered expression.

"My little Yoshika-poo isn't anyone to scoff at girls, that little gatekeeper friend of yours will be hard-pressed to defeat her, that I'm certain of…" Seiga said with an air of arrogance in her voice.

"Meiling will win! She promised she would!" Flandre persisted.

Seiga let out a hearty laugh at Flandre's response, as if she had just told her a good joke. Sega took out a handkerchief from her dress pocket and began to wipe newly formed tears from her eyes. "Oh little vampire…that was one of the most humorous things I've heard in a great while…sure, that gatekeeper may be a strong youkai, being able to use chi is no small feat after all…but a technique like that is rendered completely and utterly useless by my cute little Jiang Shi."

"What do you mean?" Koishi asked.

The hermit looked at them with amusement before speaking once again. "You see, Jiang Shi can't be sustained by normal food like the rest of us creatures of the earth can, they must eat the life force from living things to keep themselves alive…Right now, my adorable little Yoshika is slowly eating the life away from her, it's like an all you can eat buffet of chi for my adorable little minion! Soon enough, Ms. Meiling will tire out and will be nothing but a corpse…Perhaps once Yoshika finishes off her meal, I'll turn Meiling into a Jiang Shi as well. Then I'll have a matching set!" Seiga chirped happily, making the two youkai beside her turn pale.

Flandre slowly scooted away from the laughing hermit, taking a spot right next to Koishi. Flandre glared at the hermit with hate in her eyes, pouting at the blue haired woman as she kept on cackling at her own words. "Don't worry Flanny, China'll be fine…She can do it." Koishi reassured.

Flandre managed to put on a small smile and nodded in agreement, but after the hermit's words, she couldn't help but fear for her friend of over a hundred year's chances of survival…she silently began to pray for her victory over Yoshika.

For an opponent with rigor mortis, Yoshika was quite an impressive fighter. Her attacks may have been sloppy, but the strength behind them was something to be feared. Meiling never felt such excitement battling an opponent, such adrenaline! It was a feeling that a spell-card duel could never emulate, the shear feeling that your life was truly at risk. She had felt this same feeling during the short battle she had with Kaguya and Eirin in the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, but not to this extent! It had been so long since Meiling had dueled a worthy opponent outside of the spell-card system, and despite the situation she was in, she couldn't help but enjoy herself.

Meiling formed a small grin on her face, "Well, I must say I'm quite impressed by your skill Yoshika…your form may be lacking, but that strength of yours…that last hit felt like I was just hit by a mountain…I must commend your skill. Now, it's time to step my game up a bit here." Meiling said as her entire body began to glow as a bright rainbow colored aura formed around her. "Let's see what you're really made of!" Meiling shouted, sprinting back into the fray with renewed confidence.

"Yeah! Go get her Meiling! Show her what you're made of!" Flandre cheered.

"Hmmmmm, still think she has a chance child?" Seiga asked, looking to be suppressing a smile, "That fancy light show is pretty and all, but my Yoshika will still trample her beneath her adowable wittle feet! Oh, my Yoshika is just too cuuuuuuuuuuute!" Seiga gushed, as she looked down at Yoshika from her perch affectionately.

"…What a weirdo…" Koishi whispered to Flandre. The vampire silently nodded in agreement as she and her satori friend slowly inched away from over-affectionate hermit.

Meiling pounced at the Jiang Shi, striking at her with a flurry of punches. Her movements were so quick that they appeared to be a blur of green. Yoshika, being slow and sluggish, was unable to dodge her attacks at the speed they were coming at, forcing her to take each and every hit from the gatekeeper.

Yoshika stumbled back a bit from each powerful hit Meiling landed, with saliva flying from her face each time her face made contact with Meiling's fists. The undead girl tried to get a grasp on the situation, but Meiling refused to let up on her attack, keeping Yoshika struggling to keep up with her. The tables have begun to turn…

"Time to finish this…" Meiling's fist began to fill with chi, slowly glowing brighter and brighter as she kept on gathering energy into her hand. Soon her fist grew to be so bright that it was almost blinding, illuminating the immediate area with a great rainbow colored light.

"Wow…It's so bright…" Flandre said in awe of the spectacle as she shielded her eyes from the bright light emanating from her friend.

"Finish her!" Koishi cheered enthusiastically as she shielded her eyes as well. The satori was much more confident of the gatekeeper's success than she was only just a few moments ago.

Seiga kept her cocky smile as she stared directly into the brilliant light, the blinding amount of light didn't seem to bother the hermit in the slightest, "Ha! This is very impressive and all, but my darling little Yoshika will hardly flinch at this pretty little light display Ms. Meilig's putting on." Seiga remarked smugly. Flandre and Koishi both stuck their tongues out at the hermit's comment. Seiga however, didn't seem to care at the least, as she didn't pay them any mind and remained focused on the quarrel.

Once Meiling was satisfied by the amount of chi she had gathered, she let out a mighty battle cry, and began to dash forward. She was determined to end this battle before she lost her strength once again; this attack was draining much of what little energy she had left. The gatekeeper usually tried limiting the amount of chi she packed into her attacks, as using too much at a time would leave her completely drained, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

As Meiling reached her target, she pulled her fist back and prepared to swing it right into Yoshika's gut, hopefully ending this pointless battle in the process. However, Yoshika seemed to have a different idea in mind. The Jiang Shi suddenly began to take a deep breath of air, this in itself was not too strange, but its effects were. As Yoshika inhaled, Meiling noticed that the plant life in the immediate area slowly began to wither and die. The leaves of trees that were once a bright green color slowly turned into a dark shade of brown before coming off from its branches and into Yoshika's mouth. Meiling finally came to the realization of why she had felt so drained…The Jiang Shi was slowly sucking her very essence away…

Meiling's face went pale as she watched her surroundings slowly perish. Even her chi powered fist wasn't spared by Yoshika's life stealing inhalation, as Meiling's once radiantly glowing fist slowly began to dim. Meiling gasped as the realization and quickly threw a punch before Yoshika sapped away all of its power.

The blow sent Yoshika flying through the air, when she finally fell back onto the earth; she skidded painfully on the hard ground, ripping her clothes in the process. Though despite the mighty blow she had received, Yoshika still managed to get back up. The attack still left her body battered and bruised, striking the Jiang Shi hard enough to draw blood, as a small amount of crimson liquid was slowly trickling from the wound on her gut Meiling had given her with her last punch. But despite her injuries, Yoshika still didn't look fatigued at all, she looked like she could keep this up all night…Meiling on the other hand, was dead tired. She panted for air as she stared at the Jiang Shi with disbelief. There was no way she could defeat the Chinese vampire at this rate…

"That hurt you know…That wasn't very nice…not at all…" Yoshika whined, "But…I'll forgive you if you let me take the smallest of bites from you…I'm starving…" the undead girl said as she slowly began to march towards Meiling.

Meiling grit her teeth in frustration, she had to think of something quick, lest she become the Jiang Shi's next meal...the gatekeeper finally decided on a course of action. Hopefully this would work…she hadn't completely mastered the technique she was about to use, but this was the last trick she had up her sleeve. If this didn't work, then she would have to get used to calling Seiga, 'master'…Meiling refused to let that happen.

The gatekeeper put her hands together and began to focus, putting all of her thoughts aside into the back of her mind. All of her thoughts slowly dissolved until her mind was completely empty…Slowly, the chi of every living creature surrounding her slowly began to condense around her. From plants, to the earth beneath her, and even from her companions…chi from each of them began to gather around Meiling.

Soon a light even brighter than the one from Meiling's last attack began to glow around Meiling's entire body, it was so bright it could be seen from even the human village. The onlookers of the battle all had to cover their eyes from the intensity of the light; even Seiga couldn't bear to look into it. Yoshika just blankly stared at the gatekeeper, despite the blinding aura around her, and halted her slow march.

Meiling grinned as more and more chi condensed into her being, her energy had begun to return to her thanks to the life energy. This was her chance to finally put this battle to an end. Without any warning, Meiling swiftly charged towards Yoshika, appearing in front of Yoshika in an instant, surprising the Jiang Shi in the process.

Meiling threw a powerful blow to Yoshikas's gut; the strength behind it caused Yoshika to spit up what little blood was in her body and knock the wind out of her. Meiling followed up with a flurry of punches, her movements were barely visible they were so fast. The gatekeeper ended her barrage of punches and aimed a high kick right into Yoshika's face, sending the undead girl flying up into the air. Meiling jumped up into the air in pursuit of her now airborne opponent, soon passing her by. As Yoshika's body reached Meiling, the gatekeeper gave her a fierce drop kick to the stomach, sending her soaring back down to the earth below.

Yoshika crashed back down into the earth with great momentum, sending dirt and dust flying everywhere. Yoshika's eyes struggled to remain conscious, as she slowly watched Meiling fly down towards her, with her fist glowing brightly with a colorful aura surrounding it. Meiling landed her fist right into the Jiang Shi's stomach, causing Yoshika to let out a scream from the shear amount of pain the attack inflicted her with. The impact of the hit caused dust to go soaring in its wake.

Meiling crouched before her now unconscious foe, panting for air. Meiling slowly began to rise, and thrust her fist into the air victoriously. "Ahahahaha! I-I did it! I won! I won! Woo…oh man that was a close one…think I might need to sit down for a second…"

"Meiling! Meiling! You did it!" Flandre cheered as she flew towards the exhausted gatekeeper, tackling her with an affectionate hug causing Both Flandre and Meiling fell over on to the ground. "I was so worried China…you better not scare me like that again!"

"Y-Yeah alright…I'll be a little more cautious from now on…now could you let me go Flandre…I…I can't…breath…"

"Way to go Meiling! That was amazing!" Koishi exclaimed as she too joined in the hug. "I was a little worried though…you better be more careful from now on, or I'll have to punish you!"

"O-Okay…I-I get it…I'm…I'm alright now…you can both let go now…" Meiling groaned as she struggled for air. Flandre and Koishi began to erupt into cheerful laughter, overjoyed that their friend had survived the fight in one piece; Meiling couldn't help but join in their laughter.

The group's laughter was suddenly interrupted by a slow applause from Seiga, who had a smug grin on her face, "Well done Ms. Meiling! Well done! I must say, I'm duly impressed by your power! I was beginning to think you were going to join the ranks of the dead for a moment there…A truly spectacular performance!"

"Kaku…" Meiling growled, "Leave. Now."

"No need to be so hostile dear…I'm just trying to give you a compliment…"

"I'm serious, hermit. Leave my sight this instant! I'm in no mood to see that despicable face of yours right now…Not after you sent your minion after us…" Meiling shakily got up from the ground, with Flandre and Koishi quickly got off of her. The pair of girls looked frightened by the uncharacteristic hostility behind Meiling's voice.

"Oh…Well I suppose I did do that…didn't I? But everything turned out alright in the end, didn't they? You got to play with my little Yoshika, and I got some entertainment, everyone wins!" Seiga said happily, "Though I'm a little peeved that you hurt my precious little Yoshika…Though she's a tough girl, she'll be running around good as new in no time."

"Just…Just get out of here!" Meiling shouted.

"Alright, alright…calm down…I'm leaving now…" Seiga said dismissively as she walked towards Yoshika and hefted her up on to her back. "Oh, and Ms. Scarlet!" Flandre looked up in surprise from suddenly being addressed, "Best of luck with your travels! I do hope you and your friends enjoy yourselves in your travels~!"

"Ah…Ermm…Th-thanks…" Flandre mumbled back as she hid behind Meiling as she waited for the hermit to make her departure.

"Ta-ta for now! I hope we may meet again someday!" Seiga chirped as she lifted off from the ground, flying away to only god knows where with Yoshika in tow. Her silhouette could be seen in the moon briefly before she disappeared into the darkness of the night.

"Hrmph, what an annoyance…" Meiling spat in disgust, "Well…with that done and over with, it's time to make camp for the night…I wanted to make more ground before calling it a night but…" Meiling let herself fall back onto the grassy ground below, surprising both of her cohorts. "I'm dead-tired…" she groaned in exhaustion.

Though they weren't quite as exhausted as Meiling, Flandre and Koishi both agreed with the gatekeeper, it had been a long day…both of them were ready to turn in for the night.

* * *

Consciousness came back to Yoshika as her eyes slowly began to open. She found herself lying on a soft futon in a brightly lit room. The room at had several antiques looking to be of eastern origin. It was one of the few places her slowly rotting brain could ever remember; it was the home of her master.

"Oh, Yoshika dear! You've finally awakened!"

Yoshika turned her head towards the voice, and found Seiga entering the room, with her usual cheerful smile on her face. "Master!" Yoshika cried happily, overjoyed to see her master. Though her mood quickly soured as she remembered her failure, she had failed her master… "M-Master…" Yoshika whimpered sadly as tears formed in her eyes.

"What's wrong my dear? Why're you crying?" Seiga asked.

"I…I failed you…Master…I couldn't beat her…I c-couldn't beat that green lady…I-I'm s-sorry…Master…" Yoshika cried, with tears now freely flowing from her eyes. "I-I'm the worst underling ever! I'm so sorry mast-"

Yoshika's words were cut off as Seiga embraced her undead underling, "Hush now…It's alright my little Yoshika…You did your very best…I'm so proud of you…" Seiga whispered.

"R-Really? Y- You…aren't mad…?" Yoshika asked.

"Of course not my silly little Yoshika! I could never be angry with you!" Seiga said happily. "Now you get some rest now, my cute little Jiang Shi, you've had a long day…" Seiga planted a small kiss on her underling's forehead, making Yoshika grow a small smile on her face.

"Y-Yes master…" Yoshika said in a whisper as she laid back and slowly drifted off back to slumber.

"Sweet dreams, my little Yoshika…" Seiga smiled to herself as she took one last glance at her peacefully sleeping underling before heading off to bed herself.

* * *

**A/N: Boy, it sure has been a while since the last chapter...Really sorry about that. I've been busy with lots of things lately, had to be writing for my other story that's currently in the works, and had a bit of writer's block on this...But at least I finally posted another chapter eh? Finally hit the big twenty!**

**Nothing else to say really...Aside from thank you for your patience, and thanks for all the support given to this story thus far! It truly means a lot to me! Well, until next time!  
**


	21. Chapter 21: Flower Viewing

Morning had arrived in Gensokyo, with the nocturnal youkai returning to their territories to go back to their slumber until night had fallen once again, and the humans awakening to a new day. Some of Gensokyo's residents however, were having a bit of difficulty waking up this morning.

"Do you think we should wake her up? She's been sleeping for a while now…" Koishi asked as she stared down at a sleeping Meiling. It looked like the gatekeeper wouldn't be waking up anytime soon if her snoring was any indication.

"I dunno…" replied Flandre, looking unsure of what to do. "She's never slept this long before…and she sleeps a lot!"

The two youkai girls had been mulling the idea of rousing the gatekeeper from her sleep for quite some time now, both were lost and had no clue what to do with Meiling still asleep. "Maybe we should dump some water on her, that's what sis does to our cat when she's being lazy…heehee, the look on Orin's face is always priceless…" Koishi said as she giggled at the recollection.

"You have a cat? Lucky, big sis never let me have any pets…" Flandre said with a pout.

"Big sis has a lot of cats, and a bunch of hell ravens too. Heehee, we have one named Okuu that's really funny, she and Orin are my favoritest pets out of them all, they're all so nice and cuddly and soft…" Koishi grew a big smile on her face as she kept going on about all of the pets her elder sister owned. "But…Big sister is the best out of them all…" as she said this Koishi's smile began to falter slightly, "She's nice…she smells really good…she's really pretty…sh-she gives the best hugs in the world…"

"Koi-Koi…are you okay?" Flandre asked as Koishi's voice began to crack.

"I-I'm f-fine…why wouldn't I be…s-silly Flanny…" Koishi replied as she tried to put on a smile, though it was unsuccessful as it turned into a frown and tears began to drip from her eyes.

"…But you're crying…"

"I-I'm not crying…you must be s-seeing things…" Koishi turned away from Flandre and began to wipe the tears from her eyes using her sleeves.

"What's wrong Koi-koi? You can tell me…China says I'm a good listener!"

The satori slowly turned around to face Flandre, her face was red and puffy and was still wet from the tears she was shedding, "W-Well…I…I…" Koishi began to stutter out, "I miss my big sis!" she cried out, hugging Flandre tightly as she began to weep into her. Flandre was stunned by the satori's confession; she had never shown any indication of missing her sister since having met her…although she did mention her quite often. "I miss everything about her…her smell, her prettiness…her everything!"

Flandre felt as though she could relate to where Koishi was coming from, she also missed her older sibling…it had been years since she had seen her. She was saddened that she hadn't spoken to her; much less laid her eyes upon her in so long.

"I know what you mean…" Flandre mumbled sadly. She didn't want her friend to go so long without seeing her sister as she had, or anyone else for that matter. To her, it felt like there was an unfilled gap in her life, she didn't want Koishi to feel the same way about her own life. "If you miss her so much, why don't we go visit her?" the vampire suggested.

"R-Really? But Flanny…what if…what if she doesn't want to see me…?" the satori asked. That wasn't quite the response Flandre was hoping for.

"Why wouldn't she you silly-goose? You're her sister! Of course she wants to see you! She loves you!" Flandre insisted, the little vampire never thought she would have to tell anyone else aside from herself those words.

"But…That moon lady…" Koishi began, turning her head downcast, "She said I was a bad sister…that I left big sis all alone by herself…what if she was right Flanny? …What if I am a bad sister…?" Koishi asked. The satori looked like she would burst right back into tears at any given moment.

Flandre wasn't all too sure how to answer that question…of all the times Meiling had to be out cold sleeping, why did it have to be now? Koishi stared at her friend with wet eyes, waiting for her to come up with an answer. "W-Well…You shouldn't listen to that big mean doctor lady! She's wrong! She's just grouchy and old! Your big sister loves you, and she always will, silly! So let's go visit her, and we'll prove that old moon lady wrong!"

Koishi sat in silence with a look of awe on her face, as she let the vampire's words sink in. Koishi's frown slowly began to shift back into a small smile, "Yeah…your right Flanny. Thanks…" Koishi said she pulled the vampire into a hug, in which Flandre happily returned. "Don't tell China this, but…You're my bestest friend in the world Flanny…I hope we'll always be friends…" the satori whispered into Flandre's ear.

Koishi's words made Flandre form one of the biggest smiles she had ever had in her lifetime, she hasn't had a smile quite this big in a few hundred years, the day when she and her longtime friend Meiling had first met. Though Meiling had always been kind to her, and provided enough friendship for two people over the long years she had known her for, Flandre couldn't help but feel happy that she had met Koishi. She was certainly one of the oddest people she had ever met, but she was also one of the kindest. She was glad she could call the satori 'friend.'

The pair's heartfelt moment was suddenly interrupted, as Koishi's eyes popped open wide, and her mouth opened in amazement. The satori quickly jumped out of the embrace she had been holding Flandre in cried in glee. "Wow! Look Flanny, look! Look at all the sunflowers! They're so pretty!"

Flandre quickly turned around, and found that, as Koishi had said, there was a great field of sunflowers before the pair. The field of the majestic flowers stretched as far as the eyes could see, it looked as if the garden stretched on for miles. Flandre had briefly seen Meiling's garden around the Scarlet Devil Mansion as the she and the gatekeeper had first set out on this adventure, but even her garden paled in comparison to the grand sight before her.

"Let's go take a closer look!" Koishi took ahold of Flandre's arm and began to drag her along with her towards the garden, just as she had done several times during their stay at Myouren temple. Flandre and Koishi then head into the sunflower field, leaving one sleepy Meiling behind as she mumbled something incoherent in her sleep.

* * *

Remilia sat within her study, a room in which she now spent a majority of her time in solitude, as she read the latest issue of the Bunbunmaru news with tired eyes. She wasn't all too happy with what she was reading…not one bit. The paper's front page story made Remilia seethe with anger.

_Myouren temple assaulted! Local Karakasa gravely injured!_

_Myouren temple, a well-known Buddhist temple that was established in the human temple soon after the undefined fantastic object incident was resolved by the Reimu Hakurei and her allies, was recently the victim of an attack just a few days ago. The attack was led by Former Moon Princess Kaguya Houraisan, and the Moon Doctor, Eirin Yagokoro, in an attempt to capture the younger sister of the Scarlet Devil, Flandre Scarlet, in an attempt to collect the reward money of a whopping total of one million yen._

_In the attack, the temple's graveyard was heavily damaged, destroying much of the landscape in the area. Fortunately, all of the graves in the cemetery were spared by the temple's assailants, all aside from one lone and long forgotten grave. Temple officials are now making way with repairs to the cemetery, and have made arrangements to have the grave that was destroyed replaced. _

_In the attack, Kogasa Tatara, an unsuspecting and innocent bystander was assaulted by these attackers, and was left in critical condition. After the Moon Princess and her allies were driven off, the karakasa obake received medical aid from both the Head Priestess of the temple, Byakuren Hijiri, and priestess Ichirin Kumoi. Kogasa is now said to be recovering within the temple._

_As for Flandre Scarlet and her traveling companions, Hong Meiling, gatekeeper of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and according to recent sightings, Koishi Komeiji, younger sister to the mistress of Chireiden, have long left the temple vicinity. Their current whereabouts are currently unknown at this time._

_When questioned about the recent attack on the temple, the head priestess only had this to say. "I'm only glad that no one else was injured in this attack, and that the karakasa under our care is making a swift recovery. I thank everyone who has sent in donations to help pay for the damages, it is truly appreciated, especially with the great amount of budgeting we've had to do recently to stay financially afloat." Unfortunately, that's the only information we received from the head monk, as she had to prepare for the day's sutras, leaving many questions still left unanswered._

_When, we here at the Bunbunmaru news tried to approach Kogasa Tatara for an interview, the Bunbunmaru's sole reporter and head writer, Aya Shameimaru, was quite rudely struck upon the head with a broom by a very angry echo spirit and was then told to leave the premises immediately…When approaching other temple residents about these recent events, we received no comment…More news shall be posted as information comes out! Until next time loyal readers!_

_Article written by Gensokyo's fastest reporter, Aya Shameimaru._

Remilia growled in frustration, crumpling the newspaper in her hands before tossing it aside in her anger. She pounded both of her fists onto the table angrily, "How!? How could this have happened!? How could those imbeciles from Eientei have failed!? Useless lunarians!" She shouted in her rage, knocking a picture of herself and her sister off from the desk in her anger.

Rather than the picture's frame shattering from its inevitable flight to the floor, there was no sound of it breaking; all Remilia heard was light laughter. The enraged vampire looked up and glowered at the one who had decided to join her in her study.

"Greetings Ms. Scarlet, a fine day isn't it?" the woman asked casually as she inspected the picture with interest, "My you two girls sure did look close back in the day…I do wonder what happened…" she remarked to herself.

"What do you want? I'm in no mood for your company right now, you old fossil." Remilia growled.

"Nothing, nothing, I just thought I'd stop by and see how Gensokyo's fearsome Scarlet Devil was doing. You seem to be quite tired dear; I do hope you're getting your eight hours of sleep." Though her facial expression was hidden by the fan the woman kept over her mouth, it was quite obvious the woman had a large grin on her face. The woman placed the picture Remilia had sent flying across the room back onto Remilia's desk gently right before the vampire.

Remilia stared at the picture with a look of remorse on her face before turning her eyes back to the uninvited visitor before her, "Leave, before I have Sakuya turn you into a pincushion." Remilia demanded as she bared her fangs at the woman.

"What's with all of the hostility? I just wanted to chat for a few moments…" the woman said with sarcasm dripping from each and every word. Remilia had the sudden urge to jump up over her desk and strangle the life out of the woman; she was one of the most infuriating beings in this land… "I suppose I'll let your lack of hospitality slide just this once though, my little vampire."

"Hrmph, just leave already if you aren't going to say anything worth listening to you old crone…" Remilia said as she took a sudden interest in the world outside her window. She could see her replacement gatekeeper standing outside with her arms hanging out at her sides, wearing her new black beret as she idly waited for any intruders to come by.

"Old crone!? I'm still a hip youngster Ms. Scarlet! Quite a few men tell me I'm quite the catch…everyone wants a part of little old me!" the woman said with a large mischievous grin on her face as she lightly fanned herself. Remilia's already low amount of patience was beginning to wear thin; lately this woman has been nothing but an infuriating annoyance. "But digressing, I suppose I should get to the point of my visit…" the woman yawned loudly before continuing, "I do hope you remember you and I would be having a little chat with you if your little bounty continued to disrupt the peace within Gensokyo…"

"L-Look here…J-Just wait a while longer and I'll take this bounty down, alright? I just want my sister back within the mansion as soon as possible, and this is just the qui-"

"Calm down my hasty little vampire! Don't be so quick to make assumptions!" the woman cut off with a wave of her hand, calming Remilia down from her momentary lapse of panic. Remilia sighed in relief at the woman's words, "However…I must ask that you stop tampering with fate to further your goal here…I know that you manipulated fate to make those lunarians your unwitting pawns." The woman's smirk disappeared, as did the playfulness in her voice. "That moon princess may be a snob at times, and her pharmacist cold-hearted, but even they wouldn't go to such lengths such as injuring an innocent party to fulfill their ambitions…I hope you realize that I won't tolerate this kind of behavior in Gensokyo…So I give you this warning, Remilia Scarlet, if you tamper with anyone else's fate to get them to do your bidding, there will be some…repercussions. Do I make myself clear?" the woman asked sternly as she glared down at the much shorter vampire.

"Y…Yes…perfectly…" Remilia reluctantly said.

"Good! I'm glad we could sort that nonsense out! Now, I suppose I'll leave you so you may turn in for the day! Buh-bye Ms. Scarlet, I hope we may have another delightful chat again sometime!" the woman said with her usual playful demeanor. The woman waved her hand before her, as her hand passed by, a violet void big enough to fit a person in appeared. Each end of the hole had a red ribbon tying them, as if to keep it from closing. The woman began to slowly stroll to the rift she had opened.

"W-Wait just a moment!" Remilia called just as the lady had taken a step into the void.

The woman slowly turned around to face the vampire, "Yeeeeessssssss, Ms. Scarlet~? Please make it quick, I quite dislike being up at this hour, and would like to get back to my nap…"

"You…You knew I manipulated fate…So do you know why even when I destined the Lunarians to capture Flandre and bring her here…why…why didn't it work?" Remilia asked, swallowing a decent chunk of pride in the process.

"Well Ms. Scarlet, the answer to that question is simple…I don't know." The woman replied casually.

"Wh-What? How can't you of all people not know!? You, the self-proclaimed youkai expert not know!?" Remilia cried in disbelief.

The woman simply shrugged, "Sorry, I honestly have no idea." She said with a smirk, "I also don't know how your sister even managed to make it outside of your mansion, much less her room. It's quite the mind-boggler…"

"Wh-Wha…H-How did you…?"

"Know? Dearie, fate may not be my exact area of expertise, but I can still tell when you've been tampering with it…even if it was over four-hundred and ninety-five years ago." The woman turned away from Remilia and began to head back to her still open gap, "Now, unless you have any more questions, I'll just be on my way now…Good day, Ms. Scarlet." And with that, the woman disappeared into the void, with the hole closing behind her.

As soon as she was finally alone, Remilia slammed her head into her desk and covered her head with her hands. "How…How can this be happening…? How can I, the Scarlet Devil, the mistress of fate itself not be able to manipulate one, single person's fate…especially when that person is none other than my very own sister…" Remilia soon let herself break into tears of frustration, it was no matter to her, just so long as no one was there to witness the mighty Scarlet Devil cry like a mere child.

* * *

"Nngh…Ah…Morning already…?" Meiling asked no one in particular as she groggily awakened from her slumber, taking a good look at her surroundings. She lied upon a green grassy field, aside from a patch of grass that had withered and died due to the battle she had with Yoshika. The Jiang Shi surprisingly made a worthy foe…she was so exhausted from the battle that she didn't even bother to set up their tent for the night.

Meiling slowly scooped up her green beret and placed it on her mane of red hair. She looked around; her two companions have seemed to have wandered off in her sleep. "Flandre, Koishi, where are you!?" Meiling called out. Her only response was a soft breeze, blowing her hair gently in the wind. "Come on you two! We don't have time for games, we need to make some ground here, sitting in one spot for too long is just asking for trouble." Meiling was concerned with being attacked by any bounty hunters, after the light show she put on last night, she wouldn't be surprised if one ambushed them at any second…she was actually surprised that they haven't been attacked in their sleep.

Meiling caught the distant sound of some childish giggling, "Ah, there they are…" Meiling mumbled to herself as she turned around to face the direction the noise was coming from. As Meiling took in the sight of where her companion's laughter was coming from, her face immediately turned pale, and a cold sweat went down her face. "Oh no…of all the places they had to go…Why there…?"

Meiling stared at the place before her with fear and dread, though in hindsight a field of sunflowers wouldn't be at all intimidating, in fact it would actually be quite pleasant. But this particular field of sunflowers had quite a nasty reputation, so much that all of Gensokyo's residents gave the place a wide berth. Only the truly foolish would unwittingly go there. The Garden of the Sun was quite a fearful place despite its appearance. Though it wasn't the garden itself that garnered some much fear from human and youkai alike, it was the being that resided within it.

"Blast, it's just one thing after another…I just can't catch break…" Meiling said to herself bitterly as she slowly crept up towards the garden, "Alright calm down Meiling…Just have to go in, get Flandre and Koishi and get out…Easy…r-right…?" despite the reassuring words she told herself, Meiling didn't feel any more at ease than she had moments ago. The gatekeeper cursed her luck as she cautiously entered the garden, with any hope she and her two companions would all make it out in one piece.

Meiling walked through the seemingly endless sunflower field that was the Garden of the Sun for what felt like hours, making her steps as quiet as she possibly could as a precaution. It would be preferable if the garden's guardian was never aware of her trespassing, especially when said guardian isn't particularly known as being merciful when it came to those who so much as laid a hand on her precious sunflowers.

Despite the great amount of sheer terror this place brought to Meiling, she couldn't help but admire the amount of work and devotion given to the plants surrounding her. Not a single plant had any flaws or imperfections whatsoever; they all looked like they received plenty of love and care from their owner. Meiling shook the thoughts out of her mind, now was not the time to be admiring the gardening skills of the caretaker of the Garden of the Sun…Especially when said caretaker would snap her like a twig if she caught her sneaking around her territory.

"Darn it…Where are those two…We need to get out of here right now…" Meiling muttered to herself in worry as she slowly maneuvered her way through the sunflowers, taking particular care not to damage the plants at all. If she did, the gardener would most certainly do the same to her tenfold…and then some.

Meiling found no sign of the two girls' whereabouts, nor were there any sounds to help point in her in the right direction. The garden was almost completely silent, deathly so. The only noise was the rustling of leaves as Meiling slowly trudged her way through the garden.

Soon enough the gatekeeper made it into a small clearing within the garden, it was completely empty, aside from a pale of water sitting near its edge. Meiling took a tentative look around; it didn't seem anyone was here, which was both saddening and encouraging for the Chinese youkai. On one hand she hasn't found her two young traveling companions, but garden's owner also hasn't detected her yet. There was still time to get out with Flandre and Koishi with the garden's caretaker knowing none the wiser.

Meiling took a glance up to the sky above, the sun was now high in the sky…just how long has she been in this damnable garden? As she gazed at the sky, an idea came to her. She decided on flying into the air for a brief moment to get a grasp just how far she had gone into the garden, and see if Koishi and Flandre were anywhere nearby.

Just as Meiling lifted off from the ground, her legs were met with a searing amount of pain, as a pair of tentacle-like vines began to suddenly wrap themselves around her ankles. Meiling cried in pain as the vines cut into her before painfully slamming her into the hard ground below. The gatekeeper moaned in agony as the vines began to lift her into the air by her legs, holding her upside down.

Meiling's vision began to leave her as blood began to trickle down from her head and onto the grass below. But her eyes popped wide open and her skin became white as snow as she saw the figure standing before her.

Staring off into the distance was a green haired woman; her hair was shoulder length and looked well kept. She wore a red plaid vest over a long sleeved blouse, the woman stood under what appeared to by a large pink umbrella. Meiling wasn't sure if she was beginning to hallucinate from the amount of blood loss or not, but she almost swore that the umbrella wasn't an umbrella at all, but was actually a very large flower. The woman simply gazed off to the distance, not even bothering to look at, or even so much as acknowledge the gatekeeper's presence. Meiling gazed upon the Garden of the Sun's owner, and one of Gensokyo's most feared beings…Yuuka Kazami. Even uttering her name sent chills down people's backs, and Meiling could now see why.

Yuuka soon turned her head towards Meiling, focusing her crimson red eyes on the gatekeeper. "My, what do we have here? A trespasser? Hasn't anyone told you it's rude to intrude on someone's property? I do hope you didn't come here to harm my little babies…" Yuuka said as she began to stroke a sunflower with a look of affection on her face, "I do hope you didn't…Or I may have to give you a good talking to…" without warning the vines that ensnared Marisa slammed her into the ground just as they had done before, causing the gatekeeper even further pain, "Well? What brings you here youkai? I'm not known for my patience, so speak."

Meiling tried to speak, but her mouth refused to open. The pain the flower youkai was causing her was too much too bear; it was a struggle just to remain conscious. "…Not going to talk, hmmmm?" Yuuka asked in a bored manner, "Well that's fine…in the end, it really won't matter." The fearsome youkai slowly strolled over to Meiling, holding her face in one hand while keeping a grip on her umbrella with the other. "Now then, let's have some fun, shall we?" Yuuka said as a grin slowly formed on her face.

Meiling's pupils shrunk as Yuuka stared straight into her soul, it looked like this was going to be the end for her…though youkai would traditionally resurrect after being killed, a nasty rumor had spread that youkai who fell by Yuuka's hands never came back from the dead…Though Meiling usually took such rumors with a grain of salt, she couldn't help but believe every terrifying story she ever heard about the flower youkai as she stared into the monster's demonic pair of eyes…Meiling thought she lived a pretty satisfying life, her only regret wasn't being able to keep her promise to Flandre…It looked like the little vampire and satori would have to finish their adventure around Gensokyo by themselves...

"Hey! What're you doing to China you big bully!?"

"Hmmmmm?" Yuuka looked back from the corner of her eye from the sudden noise, diverting her attention from her prey.

Meiling's eyes widened a bit as she tried to see who was foolish enough to try and face this monster. Meiling's entire being filled with dread as she saw that it was Flandre and Koishi.

"You better let China go right now or I'll beat you up!" Flandre threatened as her black staff, laevateinn, appeared in her hands in flaming flash of light. Koishi followed her friend's lead and tried taking on an intimidating stance, though her childish looks made the effort look downright silly.

"Fl-Flandre…R-run…Take Koishi and run as far away as you can…forget about me…J-just go…" Meiling weakly commanded, blood was beginning to rush to her head, making her feel light-headed. She was honestly surprised she managed to stay conscious for this long.

Yuuka slowly turned her back on Meiling to face these newcomers. Yuuka's eyes went wide as she saw that the ones who tried to oppose her were nothing but a pair of children. The flower youkai recovered from her mild surprise and put on a stern expression before slowly making her way to the pair of girls.

Even as Yuuka slowly approached them, the pair of youkai didn't even so much as flinch and stood their ground. Meiling couldn't bear to watch what kind of horrid things that Yuuka would do to them, she clenched her eyes closed and silently began to pray for the two. She just hoped that they would forgive her for not being able to protect them…Though Meiling didn't hear any agonizing screams or cries for help. Rather she heard something that she didn't expect to hear at all…

"Oh my! Well aren't you two just adorable! I could just eat you two up!" Yuuka gushed as she pulled the pair into a big hug.

"Eh!?" was all Meiling could think to say as she watched Yuuka Kazami, a youkai that was feared by all and dubbed as a merciless and bloodthirsty monster, hug both Flandre and Koishi like a mother would her child. Flandre and Koishi also seemed to be surprised as well, as they just exchanged astonished looks as the flower youkai held the pair in an embrace.

Yuuka let the two go, but not before teasingly pinching their cheeks, "You two are just too precious! Now what are you two cuties doing here? Are you two lost?" Yuuka asked in a motherly tone as she crouched down to their height. "Oh! Would you two like some sweets? I'm sure I have some around here somewhere…" Meiling's jaw opened wide as she watched in utter shock as Yuuka dig through her vest pocket, "Aha, there they are…Here you go."

"Um, th-thanks…" Flandre said quietly as she took one of the pieces of candy Yuuka had offered.

"Yeah…thanks…" Koishi said equally as quiet as she timidly took the remaining piece of candy Yuuka held in her palm.

"Now what brings you two dears to my abode? It's not often I receive guests, much less such adorable ones such as yourselves, well aside from my usual little visitor…" Yuuka asked with an adoring smile on her face.

"…Um…W-We just wanted to look at the sunflowers…" Flandre answered timidly.

"You just wanted to look at my garden? How cute!" the flower youkai gushed, "Would you two like some lunch? I'm sure you two are hungry…"

"Ummm…N-No thanks…I'm not hungry!" Flandre hastily replied. Her stomach chose the worst possible time to betray her as a deep rumbling noise echoed throughout the garden. Flandre's cheeks blushed a little as she grasped her stomach, "Be quiet mister stomach…You're going to get me in trouble..." she whispered to herself.

Koishi slowly poked Flandre in the back a few times to get her attention, "Ummm…I'm actually kinda hungry Flanny…Can we please have some lunch…?" the satori sheepishly asked.

"Ahahahaha…You two are just too cute! Don't be so shy now, I wouldn't mind the company…Really, I insist you join me for a good meal." Yuuka said in a hospitable manner. "Plus I'd like you to meet a little friend of mine…she could use a few friends her own age to play with…so please do me the honor and join me."

"Well…Alright lady, I guess I'm kinda hungry…" Flandre admitted in embarrassment. "But you gotta let China go right now, or else!" she demanded, crossing her arms and pouting for good measure.

Yuuka let out a hearty laugh, "Oh, you mean her?" Yuuka asked as she snatched a quick glance at Meiling, who was beginning to look like she would lose consciousness at any moment now. "Oops! I wasn't aware she was a friend of yours…" as she said that, the vines around Meiling unceremoniously let her go, making Meiling fall face first on to the ground. The gatekeeper began to spit out some grass she had managed to get in her mouth and grab her hat which had fallen off from Yuuka's surprise attack.

Meiling looked up to see Yuuka standing before her, holding a hand out to her along with a smile on her face. The Chinese youkai ignored her and simply got up, wordlessly brushing her dress off. Flandre and Koishi soon crept up to her and both gave her a hug, Meiling couldn't help but smile, she was glad the two of them were safe…she would have to give the two a good scolding later for running off...but for now she was just glad they were alive.

"Well, now that that little misunderstanding has been cleared up, let's be on our way now, shall we?" Yuuka asked as she slowly walked at her own pace back to her home within the dense forest like garden it resided in.

Despite the lack of hostility the flower youkai was currently showing, Meiling couldn't help but feel a bit on edge…she refused to let her guard down around this woman. She would have to keep a close eye on her, but for now there was nothing to do but follow her to what she called home. Trying to escape Yuuka in the Garden of the Sun was like counting the grains of sand on the beach, it was a foolhardy thing to attempt. Meiling just hoped that she and her three companions would live to see another day…

* * *

**A/N: Well there we go, another chapter done and posted! I hope I didn't keep you all waiting too with this chapter, I felt really guilty for the amount of waiting I put the readers of this story through for the last one...All I can say is, is that writing two stories at a time is a big pain! I always end up feeling guilty about making the reader's of whichever story wait really long for a chapter that usually ends up being between three-thousand to five-thousand words...Which isn't as long as they should be for the amount of time I keep people waiting. xP **

**Anyways, my own personal dilemma aside, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm hoping to do a different portrayal of Yuuka than what is usually seen in these parts...Hopefully the next chapter will come out soon, as I'm excited to write it, considering one of my favorite characters of TouHou will be making an I'm thinking I won't end up finishing it until 2013...**

**Until next time!**


	22. Chapter 22: Medicine for Melancholy

Not many could claim they had survived an encounter with the feared Yuuka Kazami, a youkai known to be particularly aggressive against any who even dared to take a single step within her garden. Yet now Flandre, Koishi and Meiling could all now claim to have done this, as they followed behind the very youkai that was feared by so many. Yuuka seemed to be much more…peaceful than the monster she had heard stories Meiling had heard about her. She was said to be a force of nature itself, and that she wouldn't hesitate for even a moment to annihilate anyone who crossed her path. But both she and her two companions were still alive, and in good health aside from the beating she received from Yuuka earlier.

The flower youkai actually appeared to be quite kind and civilized, the complete opposite of the image that had been painted in Meiling's mind when she thought of the name 'Yuuka Kazami.' Meiling however, refused to let her guard down around this woman, she wouldn't allow herself to fall for this ruse. There was no way she would ever trust her.

"So my dears, if I'm not mistaken, you would be the three that have been the cause of the big fuss in Gensokyo lately, the ones who has quite a handsome amount of money on their heads?" Yuuka asked casually with a small smirk on her face. Meiling tensed in reaction, furrowing her brow as she observed the elder youkai carefully for any sign of hostility.

"Yeah…Big sis really wants me to come home…But I wanna see every inch of the world before I go home!" Flandre replied with a spark of determination in her voice.

Yuuka chuckled, "That's an admirable dream, little vampire. This humble youkai will be rooting for you and your friend's success in that goal." Yuuka turned her attention to Meiling, who had remained silent since they had begun their trek to Yuuka's abode. "So you must be Hong Meiling then, that gatekeeper for the Scarlet mansion? Forgive me for that little misunderstanding we had…I'm quite defensive when it comes to my garden..." _That's the understatement of the year_… thought Meiling, "You know, I have a gatekeeper myself…or at least did." Yuuka said with a straight smile on her face.

Meiling paled at the flower youkai's comment, she couldn't help as if she was being threatened, albeit indirectly. Yuuka seemed to take notice of her reaction, "Oh dear, you don't think I…hahahaha…You seemed to have misinterpreted my words! My little gatekeeper is just on break! She's such a devoted worker…I almost had to throw her out just to get her to take a well-deserved and needed vacation. She'll be back in a few weeks or so…honestly, you must have quite the imagination there, Ms. Gatekeeper!"

Meiling glowered at Yuuka with hate and distrust, in many ways she reminded her of Seiga. She was eager to get away from her, out of both hate for the woman, and out of fear. But for now, she was stuck being in the flower youkai's company. "So, Ms. Meiling, have you ever done any gardening?" Yuuka asked suddenly.

"Yes." Meiling replied simply.

"Really? Lovely! Simply lovely! It's rare to meet others who enjoy the pastime of gardening...it's a pity others don't take an interest in it, no?"

"Yes." Meiling replied sternly while retaining her stone cold glare.

"Perhaps we could exchange some of our respective secrets to gardening later? I would love to hear how you maintain your gardens…I also have a friend of mine who would no doubt-"

"Are we there yet…I'm huuuuuuuuungry!" Koishi whined, interrupting the brief exchange between the two gardeners.

"Yes, my young satori, we're quite close to my humble home. We should arrive any moment now actually." Yuuka answered happily.

As if on cue, the group caught sight of a grand mansion. Each of them aside from Yuuka dropped their jaws in amazement; the mansion easily matched the size of both the Scarlet Devil Mansion and Eientei. The building was covered with flora, making it almost look as if it were a part of the actual garden. It was an awe-inspiring sight to be sure.

"Well you three…Welcome to my humble home!" Yuuka cheered as she looked at her home with a sense of pride. Not many in Gensokyo lived in such large and beautiful homes, she was quite proud that she was one of the few youkai in this paradise that lived in such a grand and classy home. Yuuka looked at her guest's astonished looks with amusement, "Are you three going to stand there and gawk all day? Let's be going now, I'm expecting a guest soon, I'm sure you girls will enjoy her company…"

The three snapped out of their trance like amazement and followed the flower youkai as she leisurely began to make her way to her gargantuan sized home. As they did, Meiling began to wonder who this guest Yuuka kept going on about…The elder youkai wasn't known to associate herself with many people, if any, and instead preferred the company of her sunflowers over any human or youkai. Whoever could befriend this monster of a woman could only be a monster themselves…

* * *

Stepping inside, the three found that the interior of the mansion was just as extraordinary as it was from the outside; the rooms within Yuuka's mansion were large and spacious. It could easily house a great abundance of people, yet the only one who dwelled in this great manor was Yuuka herself. Meiling had to admit, for a ruthless and heartless killer, Yuuka had a lovely home.

Of course, this home being the dwelling of a flower youkai, there were several varieties of plants within the mansion, with sunflowers being the most plentiful variety. Aside from the flowers, there was also a great deal of art hanging from Yuuka's walls, consisting of mostly landscapes and paintings of children. Meiling was beginning to feel a little uneasy from the choice of art Yuuka displayed within her home, more specifically, the paintings of young looking children. Children that appeared to be Flandre and Koishi's physical appearance. Meiling didn't think it was possible, but she began to keep an even closer watch on Yuuka. If she even so much as laid a finger on either of her companions, she would strike her down without even a moment of hesitation.

"Ah, home sweet home…Now why don't I whip up something for you girls to eat? I'm sure you're absolutely starving!" Yuuka presumably began to head off towards her kitchen with a motherly smile on her face, "Oh, and do make yourselves at home!" she said before exiting the room.

The thought of Yuuka preparing any kind of food for her and her young companions was rather unpleasant…who knows what she would put in their food? Meiling shuddered at the possibilities of what sorts of horrible things Yuuka could do to them if left uncheck.

"Hmmmmm…You two stay here. I'll be helping Ms. Kazami with lunch preparations, stay out of trouble." Meiling said to Flandre and Koishi, who still looked awe-struck by the mansion's sheer size.

"Oh, alright China! Have fun!" Flandre chirped happily.

Meiling found great irony in Flandre's words; after all, being in the company of Yuuka was the farthest thing from the definition of fun. Despite this, Meiling managed to put on a smile and nodded before leaving the two girls to themselves. She didn't want them to become upset or worry about her; after all, sometimes remaining blissfully ignorant of the world's monsters and follies was better than being aware of them…

Meiling wandered through the halls in search of Yuuka's kitchen; so far her hunt had been unsuccessful. The mansion almost felt like it was a maze or labyrinth of some sort…In a way it made her feel nostalgic, she hadn't felt disoriented since the first time she had stepped inside the Scarlet Devil Mansion.

Thinking of her home, Meiling couldn't help but wonder what the mansions other residents were doing right about now…Sakuya was no doubt keeping the mansion in working order almost single-handedly, no thanks to the practically useless fairy maids. Patchouli was probably still cooped up in her library along with Koakuma, reading away to her heart's content. Remilia was most likely thinking up some sort of horrible punishment for her disobedience…Meiling had never personally received any punishments from her mistress, despite being threatened with them before, but this time she knew she wouldn't get away with just a warning. Meiling grimaced a bit from the thought of what sort of horrible, agonizing, and most likely humiliating punishment Remilia would give her once she returned to the mansion with Flandre…

"Hmmmmm? What are you doing here?"

Meiling snapped out of her thoughts at suddenly being spoken to. The gatekeeper found herself before Yuuka, who now had a white apron on over her dress. Meiling took a quick look around; it would seem she had found her way to the mansion's kitchen while she was lost in her thoughts.

"Are you looking for the restroom? They're in the other direction dear." Yuuka said as she motioned down the hall before going towards her kitchen counter and grabbing a very sharp looking knife.

"N-No…I just thought I would assist you in cooking. It's the least I could do after having us in your home for a meal." Meiling said nervously. Yuuka holding a razor sharp knife certainly didn't make her appear any less intimidating.

"Oh how splendid! Thank you dear. I must admit, I was beginning to think you were afraid of little old me… I'm certainly glad that isn't the case." Yuuka said with a warm smile.

"A-Afraid of you? Never…" Meiling lied, "Now…What do you need help with here?"

"Hmmmmm…Your tone says so otherwise…" Yuuka said with a smug grin growing on her face, "No matter…I'm sure you'll warm up to me eventually! Anyways, why not help me slice up some of our ingredients here?" without warning she casually tossed the knife that she was holding to Meiling, who clumsily managed to catch it, despite her initial surprise from the sudden action.

"Y-Yeah, sure! I'll do that…" Meiling replied as she went to work, slicing a bright and plump tomato into pieces.

Yuuka grabbed another just as sharp knife from her small rack of rather sharp kitchen utensils and began to use it to cut up what looked like rather bloody meat into thin slices. Meiling tried to get a closer look at the meat, she could never be too careful after all...

"It's just meat you know, Ms. Meiling…" Yuuka said suddenly.

"Eh?"

"I've noticed how you've been eying me, I can assure you that it isn't poisonous, it's perfectly safe for consumption." Yuuka clarified as her cutting became more rapid, "I'm not going to slit your throat while your back is turned you know…"

"I have no clue what you mean…" Meiling said, feigning ignorance. Her heart began to thump uncontrollably, yet she managed to keep a neutral expression on despite the pressure she was under.

"Please, I am no fool, once you've lived as long as I have, you know when people fear you…I can see it in those lovely little eyes of yours…" Yuuka said as she continued her rhythmic cutting, "The question is though…do you fear for your own life…or do you fear for lives of those little girls you've been traveling with?" Meiling tried to speak, but found that no words left her mouth, she was speechless. "I suppose I can't blame you though…I don't exactly have a great reputation around Gensokyo, now do I?" Yuuka let out a hearty laugh, taking a momentary break from cutting her ingredients into tiny bits.

"…No, no you do not." Meiling managed to say through her fear, "Which is why with all due respect, if you even lay a single finger on Flandre or Koishi, I won't hesitate to end you." Meiling said with great venom in her voice. Honestly, Meiling was almost completely certain she couldn't follow through with her threat; Yuuka was rumored to be one of, if not the strongest youkai in Gensokyo. There was no possibility of defeating her if that was true, yet she couldn't bear it if she stood by and watched Yuuka do as she pleased to her friends, the shame would be too great on her conscience if she allowed that.

Yuuka finally stopped her quick and precise cutting and turned her head and looked the gatekeeper right in the eyes. Yuuka smirked and went back to her activity of mindlessly cutting and slicing the meat to pieces, "Well then, I suppose I'll just have to take care not to touch them then, won't I?" replied Yuuka.

The rest of the time was spent in awkward silence, as Meiling glared at Yuuka with distrustful eyes. The elder youkai however didn't pay her any mind, as she went on with her business of preparing her guests' meals without a care, and did so while humming a happy melody. Her careless attitude only served to anger Meiling further. First Seiga Kaku and now Yuuka Kazami… It felt as if the world was forcing Meiling to interact with these detestable people whether she liked it or not. She needed a moment to herself to calm herself down, lest she do something she would no doubt regret later.

"Pardon me for a moment, but I need a few moments to myself." Meiling announced, as she dropped what she was doing and began to make for the room's exit.

"Oh, alright then. Do take your time." Yuuka absent mindedly replied as she happily continued preparing the meal with a faint smile on her face.

Meiling paused for a moment before replying, "Thank you, I will." She then exited the room unceremoniously. As soon as Meiling left the company of Yuuka, she almost immediately felt relieved. Though she wasn't quite as terrified of her as she had been during their first encounter, the flower youkai still made her feel uneasy…

* * *

"…Y'know, China's been acting funny…" Flandre remarked as she and Koishi explored the halls of Yuuka's vast mansion.

"Huh? But she isn't funny. She doesn't even tell any good jokes…" Koishi replied as she quickly flipped through the pages of a book she happened to come across.

"Not that kind of funny silly! I mean she's been acting really weird…"

"Ohhhhh…Yeah! She's been acting really strange ever since we came to this garden!" Koishi tossed the book aside after finding it uninteresting and went off to find something else that might appease her boredom.

"She's usually never grumpy…I wonder what's bugging her…" Flandre muttered as she paced around the room in thought.

Koishi began to take a look at one of the pieces of art hanging from the wall with a look of mild interest, "Maybe she didn't get enough sleep? She's loves to sleep, doesn't she? I know I'd get cranky if I didn't get my eight hours of sleep!"

"Hmmmmmm…Maybe…" Flandre said with a bit of doubt in her voice.

"Or maybe she just doesn't like that flower lady?" Koishi suggested, "She did beat her up pretty badly…"

"China isn't the type to be mad at people though…She's always nice to everyone! No matter what!"

"Well, why else would she be so grouchy?"

"…I dunno…" Flandre mumbled.

The two's discussion was interrupted by a light knocking at the door, causing Koishi to look away from the painting that had captured her interest, "Oh! I'll get it! I'll get it!" Koishi shouted enthusiastically as she skipped her way to the door.

Flandre followed behind as Koishi began to open the door and greet whoever had ventured their way through this forest-like field of flowers just to visit Yuuka. She had to admire Koishi's enthusiasm for well…just about everything. She always seemed to have a spring in her step in any task she performed, even if it were something as mundane as simply answering the door.

Koishi swung the door open wide with a large toothy grin on her face, revealing a very short girl. She had a head of short blonde hair with a small red bow tied into it. She had another red bow tied around the collar of her shirt, which was completely black, aside from a few lines of red fabric around her sleeves and down the front of it. She also wore a completely red skirt that had black lines around its hem. Peculiarly enough, a small doll that almost appeared to be a miniature version of her floated at her side.

The girl's silver eyes met Koishi's dark green ones, looking at her with a bit of curiosity, "Hello! Who're you? I'm Koishi!" the satori greeted happily.

"…You're not Yuuka." The girl stated plainly, "Who are you?"

"I'm Koishi!" the satori said blissfully, "Oh and this is Flandre!" Koishi pulled over the vampire by the collar of her dress. Flandre put on a polite smile and gave a small wave to the girl, who only raised an eyebrow at her introduction, "So who are you? Are you that flower lady's friend? And why do you smell so funny?" Koishi asked quickly in rapid succession.

The girl ignored Koishi's questions and asked one of her own, "Where's Yuuka?" she began to tap her foot impatiently as she waited for an answer.

"She said she was going to make some lunch." Flandre answered happily.

"I see…" muttered the girl as she stepped inside the mansion, with the small doll following her. The girl scanned the area for a short moment before wordlessly moving on to the next room, not paying either of the other girls in the room any mind. Curious, Flandre and Koishi began to trail after the girl, making their steps light as to not be detected.

However, the girl noticed that she was being followed fairly quickly, no thanks to the pair's lack of experience with stealth. She stopped in her tracks abruptly, causing Flandre and Koishi to stumble a bit in an attempt to silence their steps. Turning around, the girl faced the pair, "What do you want?" she asked coldly, crossing her arms across her chest as if to emphasize her displeasure, with the small doll mimicking the movement along with her.

"Nothing. We're just bored! You wanna play a game with us?" Koishi invited cheerfully.

"No. Now leave me alone." The girl said venomously before continuing onwards through the halls.

The satori persisted to keep pestering the girl despite her curt response, "Why not? Don't you ever play any games? My pets play games with me all the time!"

"Then why don't you go play with your pets then?" the girl rolled her eyes in annoyance as she began to quicken her pace.

"Because, they're back at home…" Koishi murmured sadly, but quickly perked up again, "So come on! Let's play a game! It'll be fuuunnnnnn…"

"I said no, leave me alone." growled the girl. She now looked visibly annoyed by Koishi's constant attempts at convincing her to join in their games.

"Come on, please?" Flandre said, "You can pick the game if you want!"

"I told you several times now, I do not. Want. To. Play. With. YOU. Now just leave me alone!" the girl shouted, stomping her foot in anger. The small doll jumped back a bit in surprise from the girl's outburst and hid behind a nearby vase of flowers in fear.

Flandre and Koishi were also startled, recoiling a bit from the girl's infuriated tantrum. Without a word, the girl suddenly ran down the hall in an attempt to get away from the pair of girls. The tiny doll that had been following her crept out from behind the vase and in a panicked frenzy, barreled down the hallway after her, clumsily hitting the wall a few times in its hurry.

The satori snapped her fingers a few moments after both the girl and doll had become a speck in the distance, "Oooh! I get it now! She wants to play tag!" she cried in glee.

"Are you sure? She seemed really mad…"

"Of course! Why else would someone run off like that? Only a person who really wanted to play a game of tag would run that fast!"

"Oh…Well, if you say so!"

Koishi put on a devious smile as she crept up to Flandre silently. She then jabbed the vampire with her pointer finger, "You're it!" she giggled as she began to skip away happily.

Flandre had a look of confusion on her face as she merely watched the satori run off down the halls, and then the realization came upon her. Koishi had pulled a fast one on her. Flandre grinned ear to ear as she began to soar in pursuit after the sneaky satori.

* * *

"Hrmph…What annoyances…" the girl mumbled to herself angrily, the doll that accompanied her simply looked at her with its small beady eyes as it floated at her side, "Why on earth would Yuuka associate herself with those two?" she inquired to the doll. The doll didn't give her any response, and just resumed flying beside her, "I suppose I'll just have to ask Yuuka myself…I wonder what goes on in that head of hers at times…"

The girl paused for a moment as she reached a door; she recognized it as the door to Yuuka's kitchen area. If what those two had said proved to be true, the flower youkai would be inside preparing herself a meal. In all honesty, she was a bit surprised to hear that Yuuka was scrounging herself something up to eat. Such tasks were below a great youkai of such stature such as herself, all of the housework fell down to her gatekeeper, who oddly seemed to be missing from her post…She would have to ask Yuuka for the reasons of her absence, she was much too devoted to her job to just abandon it on a whim.

The girl began to step on the tips of her toes as she reached for door handle. Her short stature always made things difficult, she wished she had been constructed with a wee-bit longer legs…it would have made life much easier on her. She growled in frustration as she found the handle eluding her by just the shortest of distances, she silently cursed whoever had made such tall doors. The girl then jumped in an attempt to close the distance between her fingers and the oh-so elusive door handle. The girl cheered as she finally had her clutches on the handle, she was about to finally open the door, but suddenly began to hear the stomping of feet echoing down the halls.

She turned her head towards the sound, it sounded akin to a small stampede of wild animals trying to escape from their hunters. The girl exchanged a glance with her small doll, who cocked her head seemingly in confusion. The source of the sound revealed itself as the annoying girl from before, she laughed in an obnoxious manner as she ran down the halls. She was being chased down the halls by the less annoying girl who had the strangest wings she had ever laid her eyes upon. The girl then realized something. They were about to run her down.

The girl frantically tried pushing the door open in an attempt to avoid them, but it was too late. All she could do is cry out as the two girls crashed right into her, causing them to spill out through the door and into the kitchen in a small pile. To her horrible luck, she found herself on the bottom of the pile, being completely crushed under the combined weight of the girls. She groaned in pain as she struggled to get out from beneath the two, whereas the two girls began to erupt into a fit of laughter.

The girl however, found no humor in the situation and emitted an infuriated growl as she began to shove the girls off of herself, though was unsuccessful in her attempt at freeing herself, "Get off of me you twits!", the girl screamed as she mustered up as much strength as she could in one last attempt to escape from underneath the two. This time she finally succeeded, and managed to crawl out from beneath them, causing the pair to fall onto the floor with small thud.

She began to pant for air and dust her dress off with an agitated look on her face, with her doll helping her by readjusting the bow that was tied in her hair. The girl glowered at the pair of girls who had finally stopped laughing, and were now looking at the girl curiously. "I believe I told you to leave me alone? Didn't I? Or do your ears not work properly? I'll say it one more time, leave. Me. Alone!" the girl shouted furiously.

"Sorry…" Flandre and Koishi both muttered together sadly, their expressions looking remorseful as the girl glared at them with contempt.

"My, what seems to be the problem here?"

Turning away from the two youkia girls, the little blonde girl found the person she had been looking for since she first stepped inside the massive mansion, "Finally…I've been looking all over for you Yuuka! I'm so glad I've finally found you…" the girl exclaimed in relief, forgetting all about the two girls as she walked up to the much taller flower youkai, "You won't believe what I've had to go through with those…those…IDIOTS!" she shouted, as she shot the two behind her a nasty look.

"Now, now my little Medicine, be nice now…They are my guests, after all."

Medicine had a questioning look on her face, "…Guests? Why on earth would you ever allow such insufferably annoying girls in your home!?" she asked in disbelief. Yuuka never allowed guests in her home, aside from herself of course. What made these girls so special that they were allowed in the Garden of the Sun? Much less Yuuka's mansion?

"Why not?" Yuuka shot back, wearing a smug grin, "Besides, you could use some little friends to play with. You're either in that Suzuran field of yours, or you're here. You need to spread out your circle of friends and acquaintances."

"I can't believe what I'm hearing… I don't need any more friends; I have plenty! Besides, I would never associate myself with such…pests." She spat in disgust. Flandre and Koishi both had hurt expressions from her comment, looking sadder than they had mere seconds ago.

Yuuka frowned a bit, "Come now dear, at least give them a chance. I'm sure you'll find that they are exceptional girls once you spend some time with them."

"No. I could do much better things with my time rather than hang out with those two urchins." Medicine replied flatly.

Yuuka crouched down to Medicine's level, and looked her in the eyes, "Please, just play with them for a while, for me?" Medicine crossed her arms and looked away, looking completely appalled by the idea. Yuuka however, still had an ace up her sleeve, "Tell you what, if you run off and play with them, I just might consider letting you plant some of those Suzurans you're so fond of in my garden."

Medicine looked at her skeptically, "How many…?" she asked slowly.

"We'll discuss the details later, after you go and play with those two, like a good girl."

Medicine groaned, "Fine…Deal…" she muttered, shaking Yuuka's hand for good measure. She knew the flower youkai followed a code of honor, and never went against her word, especially when she shook on it. She turned and faced Flandre and Koishi, who were still glum from her earlier comments. Medicine sighed deeply before forcing herself to speak, "…What do you want to play…?"

Flandre and Koishi's faces lit up at the question, with any trace of them ever being upset being completely erased, "Ooh! I know! Let's play some hide and seek!" Flandre said, "Ooh! Or maybe Simon says…or even some red-rover-red-rover!"

"Those are some great ideas, Flan-Chan! Ooh! Maybe…We could play all three…at the same time!" Koishi chirped happily. Before Medicine could object to it, the vampire and satori each took her by her wrists and pulled her along with them as they discussed what sort of games they would play with their new, yet reluctant playmate.

Just as they left, Meiling had reentered the room, now much more calm and composed than she had been minutes ago. The first thing she noticed was her two young and childish companions dragging away what appeared to be young girl in black that looked to be about Flandre and Koishi's age, though was a good inch shorter than the two. Her chi also felt…strange. It almost felt as if she wasn't alive, though at the same time, she sensed a great flair of life from her as well…her presence almost felt like Yoshika's had, yet at the same time, completely different.

"She's a Tskumogami, if you were wondering." Yuuka said, making her presence known to the gatekeeper.

Meiling turned towards the flower youkai, who was watching the three girls disappear from sight with an amused expression on her face. "Hmmmm, a Tskumumogami, eh…?"

Kogasa popped into her head at the term, she hadn't spoken much with the girl, but she seemed to be good-natured for a youkai, and was on good terms with her two cohorts as well. But even with her minimal interaction with the karakasa, she could tell that both she and the blonde girl she had just seen had a great difference in their life energies despite being classified under the same type of youkai. Her chi was hard to read, even with a human's lifetime in experience with it.

"Yes, a Tskumumogami." Yuuka repeated, "She's also the guest I've been speaking of. She's quite a cutie, no?" she said a bit of adoration in her voice, "Well, enough lolly-gagging…time to get back to the old grindstone!" Yuuka clapped her hands together enthusiastically.

Meiling looked at the flower youkai with astonishment, not entirely able to grasp what she had said. How could that possibly be the guest she had been speaking of? She had been expecting someone much more…intimidating. But instead, she found that her 'guest' was nothing more than a small girl. Meiling managed to shake her disbelief out of her mind before joining Yuuka over by the counter, after all, appearances could be deceiving, even more so in Gensokyo…

* * *

**A/N: Happy New Year everybody! (Yes, I'm late with that, I know. xP) I'm happy to have finally finished this chapter…I actually have a good excuse this time though! I had the worst case of Writer's block, I just couldn't think of what to write…I tried writing a new chapter of my other ongoing story here, but wouldn't ya know it, I had writer's block on that too! **

**Plus then Christmas came and I became a bum and just played video-games for the majority of my entire Winter-break. And that my friends…is why it took so long.**

**Anyways, bull-crap excuses aside, I'm happy how this came out. I finally got to introduce one of my favorite characters of the series, Medicine. I'm honestly a little sad how unpopular she is…she's pretty pimpin' in my own personal opinion. I'm 100% certain I'll end up writing a story starring her eventually, that, however won't be written until I get this baby done…Which is now about half-way over with this chapter. My, how time flies…anyways, sorry for blathering for so long, hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I really hope you'll enjoy the next!**


	23. Chapter 23: Forsaken by Humanity

Like the rest of Yuuka's property, her courtyard was exceedingly large and well-maintained. The grass was a healthy shade of green, and even had a small pond with a tall tree overlooking it. Yuuka must have been some sort of miracle worker, as her courtyard's beauty was almost inhuman; it looked like nothing could come close to being quite as extravagant in comparison, especially as the late afternoon sun reflected off of the pond.

Once the three had stepped outside, Flandre and Koishi had decided on resuming their earlier game of tag, with Flandre still being 'it'. The two appeared to be unfazed by the size and majesty of Yuuka's courtyard as they resumed their game. The two began to run around Yuuka's enormous courtyard, looking as if they were having the time of their life just by playing a simple game of tag.

Medicine however, did not share their enthusiasm for the game. The Tskumogami simply leaned against the wall of Yuuka's mansion with her arms crossed in front of her chest and an angry scowl planted on her face as she silently observed the two. The small doll that had been hovering by her side had perched itself on Medicine's shoulders, reminiscent to how parrots would perch themselves on the shoulders of pirates.

Medicine groaned as the two happily frolicked about the courtyard. She could be doing something much more worthwhile than entertain the pair. Flandre looked at the girl and noticed her discontent, "Ummm…Do you want to play Meddy?" she asked, causing Medicine to snap out of her thoughts.

"First of all, my name is Medicine, not 'Meddy.'" She hissed, "And why would I want to? You're the ones who wanted to play these ridiculous games in the first place. I just got dragged along for the ride by you two."

Flandre pouted at Medicine's attitude towards the game, it almost felt as if the girl hated just about everything. Thankfully Koishi soon strolled over; hopefully she'd be able to convince the girl to participate. "Hey, why're you being such a party-pooper?" she asked, causing Medicine's scowl to become even more infuriated if it were possible, "Don't be such a stick in the mud! Come and play with us!"

"No. I don't see why I should have to babysit you two imbeciles when I could actually be doing something worth my time, like talking with Yuuka…" Medicine growled, "Hmph, she had better give me at least an acres worth of land to plant my suzurans in for this…"

"Oh yeah…?" Koishi asked as she edged up to Medicine until their faces almost touched.

"Yeah." Medicine spat back. The Tskumogami looked downright furious; it looked like the girl would leap up and strangle Koishi to death if the satori continued to pester her.

Koishi however, didn't seem to take note of this, and continued talking to her, "Well…you're it!" she exclaimed as she lightly poked Medicine right in the forehead before running off as quickly as she could.

If Medicine wasn't angry before, she definitely was now, "Wh-Why you little…Get back here so I can beat you to an inch of your miserable life!" she screamed in fury as she ran after her as fast as her short legs would carry her, which was actually surprisingly fast. Flandre quickly jumped out of the way before she could run her down, Medicine didn't pay the vampire any mind however as she only had one target in mind, and that was Koishi.

Before the satori knew it she was being tailed by one angry Tskumogami. Koishi took a brief look behind her as she continued to run for dear life as Medicine came closer and closer to reaching her with every passing second. The satori quickly scrambled up the courtyard's sole tree in an attempt to escape her pursuer, but she seemed to have forgotten something: Nearly everyone in Gensokyo had the ability to fly.

Medicine leapt up into the air, landing on a branch that was right next to Koishi, who went bug-eyed at Medicine's sudden appearance. Medicine gave the girl a menacing grin as she began trying to claw at her in vengeance for Koishi's earlier actions. Thankfully for the satori, she had speed and agility to spare and found avoiding the Tskumogami's attacks to be quite easy.

Medicine soon became frustrated with her lack of success in getting her revenge, with her strikes becoming more reckless and sloppy as her anger slowly began to overtake her. Because of this, the Tskumogami began to lose her balance, slowly bobbing up and down as she attempted to regain her footing. Though just to her luck, she was unsuccessful, and found herself falling from the tree and plunged right into the pond that the tree was firmly planted next to.

Koishi sighed in relief as the immediate danger splashed into the water, she began to slowly shimmy her way down the tree and back onto solid ground. Flandre was there to meet her; she wore a small frown of disapproval from her actions. Koishi either didn't care or was just ignorant to her friend's disapproval, however.

"Boy! That was one of the scariest games of tag I've ever played!" the satori exclaimed happily, "Meddy sure can be scary!"

"I don't think you should've done that Koi-Koi…She sure looked mad…" Flandre said.

Koishi looked as if she were about to say something in response, but was interrupted as a completely drenched Medicine slowly reemerged from under the water's surface. Wearing an even more aggravated look as she laid on her back, Medicine stared up at the sky as she let herself float just on the surface of the pond.

At that moment, Yuuka came out from the mansion; approaching the pair of Flandre and Koishi. "I trust you three have been getting along swimmingly?" she asked, but almost immediately regretted her choice of words as she noticed Medicine trudge her way out of the pond.

Spitting out a mouthful of water, Medicine glared at Yuuka and held three of her fingers out towards her. "Three. I had better get at least three acres worth of suzurans planted for having to deal with…_her._" she hissed as she shot a nasty look back towards the other two present, more specifically Koishi, who put on the most innocent face she could muster.

Yuuka looked at Koishi with a bit bemusement. She opened her mouth slightly, as if she was about to ask the enraged Tskumogami a question, but then thought better of it. She slowly shook her head, and sighed. "We'll have to see about that…but for now, just clean yourself up. You're soaking wet, and I won't have you getting my floors drenched."

Medicine remained silent, scowling at Koishi in pure hatred as she let her small doll companion ring-out her soaking wet ribbon for her, letting droplets of water drip down onto the ground. The doll soon jittered its way up to the top of Medicine's head, tying the ribbon back into her hair dutifully. Once it finished its work, Medicine carefully checked the doll's knot work. Finding the job satisfactory; Medicine gave the doll a nod in thanks. The doll returned the gesture before returning to its perch on the Tskumogami's shoulder.

Wordlessly, Medicine began to march her way back to the mansion huffily, not even taking a glance back towards the other three present. Medicine's departure was signified by the slamming of the mansion doors, causing the three to cringe from the noise. Yuuka began to massage her temples in apparent stress from Medicine's even fouler mood.

"I apologize for that, she can be a bit short-tempered at times…" Yuuka said apologetically.

"It's alright, it's partly our fault anyways…Right Koishi…?" Flandre said, nudging the satori in the side with her elbow.

"Yeah, yeah…" Koishi murmured in reluctant agreement as she gently rubbed her side in agitation.

"I see…all the same, I apologize for her behavior." Yuuka replied humbly, "Any who… I just came out to inform you that lunch is ready! I hope you girls are hungry!"

"Oh boy! I'm starving!" Koishi chirped happily, "My stomach has been growling louder than Okuu's whenever she gets peckish…" with that, Koishi blissfully skipped to the mansion doors, quickly entering in search of food.

"Hey! Wait for me Koishi!" Flandre called after her friend as she chased her down into the mansion.

"My, those two are quite energetic…" Yuuka remarked to herself before slowly following the two inside, "If only Medicine could show such enthusiasm…"

* * *

The meal shared by the five youkai was in a word, awkward. A now slightly less soggy Medicine remained wordless as she focused hate-filled eyes at Koishi, who apparently didn't notice the dirty look she was getting from the Tskumogami at the table as she shoveled food down her mouth by the handful. Meiling grimaced a bit from Koishi's lack of table etiquette, though remained silent as she quietly ate her meal, all the while keeping a suspicious eye on Yuuka. The flower youkai however, didn't seem to mind the gatekeeper's untrusting gaze, and ate her meal with a pleasant smile on her face. Flandre simply tried sitting-up straight in her chair as her eyes shifted back and forth between the other four seated at the table nervously. From her point of view, it looked like an all-out brawl would occur at any second.

The silence held between the four was abruptly broken when Yuuka spoke up, "Ah isn't this just lovely? A nice meal alongside some good company…one of life's simple pleasures…" she said without an ounce of irony in her statement, "Wouldn't you say, dear?" she asked the Tskumogami next to her. Yuuka only received a soft grunt of acknowledgement from the girl, as she continued glaring at Koishi. If looks could kill, Koishi's funeral would have surely been held long ago.

Flandre suddenly let out a light cough, as if to bring attention to herself. "So um…Meddy- "

"Med-i-cine." The Tskumogami hissed in correction.

"I mean Medicine…How did you and Miss Yuuki meet each other?" the vampire asked tentatively.

"Through mutual interests and hatreds." Medicine replied nonchalantly as she kept her hateful glare focused on the satori at the other side of the table.

Medicine's vague answer only served to encourage the vampire to pursue the subject further, "Like what?"

"None of your business." Medicine curtly replied.

"Now Medicine, that's no way to talk to a guest. Answer her question." Yuuka chastised.

With the roll of her eyes, Medicine conceded to Yuuka's demand, "A mutual interest in gardening, and a mutual hatred for humans." The Tskumogami answered with a lack of enthusiasm or interest in her voice.

Saying that Flandre was surprised by the latter part of Medicine's explanation would be an understatement; the younger Scarlet sister was downright shocked. Never in her life had she heard of any youkai having anything resembling hatred for humans. Meiling had always told her that both humans and youkai coexisted peacefully in Gensokyo…most of the time anyways. And in the short span of time Flandre had spent exploring Gensokyo, she hadn't once met a human or youkai who had outright despised the other species. In fact, from what she saw, humans and youkai almost seemed to get along and interact with one-another just fine. So finding out that someone, a girl who appeared to be her age no less, despised humans was overwhelming. She just had to learn of the roots of Medicine's contempt for the species.

"Wh-Why?"

"Why?" Medicine repeated, cocking her head in apparent puzzlement, "Why what?"

"Umm…Wh-Why do you hate humans?" Flandre inquired, "I mean…I have some friends who're human and they-"

"You're a friend of the humans?" Medicine asked as she turned her hate-filled glare away from Koishi and stared at Flandre with an expression that could only be described as a mix of anger, disbelief, hatred, and betrayal. "You dare ally yourself with such…such…_filth_?" at this point, all at the table were paying close attention to the conversation with worry. Even Koishi, who hadn't even noticed the dirty looks Medicine had been giving her ever since she had sat down at the table, was now watching with a hint of concern painted on her face. The eyelid of her third eye began to fidget, just barely revealing its pupil.

Before Flandre could murmur a response, Yuuka cut her way into the discussion. "Now, now, calm down dear…There's no need to get into such a fit over nothing." the flower youkai whispered to the Tskumogami in an attempt to calm her. All she received for her efforts was a furious glare burning with hatred from Medicine.

"…Nothing…? Nothing? _Nothing!?_" Medicine exclaimed in total disbelief. Everyone in the room jumped in their seats from her sudden outburst, even the fearless Yuuka Kazami couldn't help but cringe at her response. "H-How…How could you call it nothing Yuuka!? After everything those bastards have done to me…How dare you call it _nothing_!?"

"Dear, that isn't what I-"

"Shut up! Just shut up!" Medicine roared as she stood up from her seat, pounding her fists on the tabletop forcefully. She almost looked like she would burst into tears at any given moment, "…How could you call it nothing…?" she whimpered. Then without warning, Medicine ran out of the room, with her tiny doll companion pursuing after her hectically. The doll was obviously struggling to keep up with her much larger counterpart.

Flandre leapt out of her seat as well and began to chase after the girl as well and console her, just as she had done days earlier with the troubled Celestial she had met. But unlike last time, she was impeded by Yuuka, who placed a firm, yet gentle grip on her shoulder. "Just let her go, she just needs some time to herself." The flower youkai said softly, her tone was the opposite of the charisma and confidence she had displayed since meeting them. Even her imperishable smile was now a concern-wrecked frown.

Flandre moaned lightly in defeat, and gave Yuuka a small nod in agreement. The young vampire dragged her feet sadly, and held her head low, saddened that she couldn't help Medicine with her troubles as she had with those she had met before her such as Tenshi and Kogasa.

She turned her head as she felt the touch of another, she found herself looking at Koishi as she wordlessly wrapped her arm over her shoulder in an attempt to comfort the melancholic vampire. "Don't be sad Flanny, Meddy's just in a bad mood…I'm sure she'll get over it soon! Then everything will be alright again!" The satori's words had seemingly succeeded in comforting the vampire as Flandre managed to put on a weak smile, pushing her sadness aside for the moment. "Now let's go play a game! It's really boring in here…" Flandre nodded in agreement as both she and her companion stepped out of the room, leaving the two others in the room to themselves.

Despite the heart-warming display between her two young friends, Meiling's attention was focused elsewhere, specifically on Yuuka, her gaze was so focused on the flower youkai that she barely noticed the two take their leave. The gatekeeper was astounded by Yuuka, the feared Flower Master of Four Seasons and the remorseless monster of the Garden of the Sun who cared only for the wellbeing of her sunflowers and other's pain and misery actually looked genuinely concerned for someone other than herself. For the first time since her first encounter with the dreaded Flower Youkai, Meiling's confidence in the seemingly endless amount of horrifying tales she had heard about Yuuka that had spread all over Gensokyo began to falter as she looked into the Flower Youkai's sorrowful eyes.

Despite the constant mental nagging she had against the idea, Meiling cautiously approached the Garden of the Sun's mistress. "Miss Kazami…? Are you…Are you alright?" Meiling asked.

Yuuka slowly turned her head towards Meiling, staring into her eyes for a brief moment before letting out a sigh. "Don't be ridiculous…Of course I'm alright. Why on earth wouldn't I be?" she said weakly.

"Your expression betrays your words." Meiling stated simply before pulling a chair out from under the table and took a seat next to Yuuka, ignoring every instinct that screamed of the foolishness of the action. "You…You must really care for that girl, don't you?" Yuuka looked up once again, staring at Meiling with her jaw slightly ajar as she simply mulled over what the gatekeeper said.

"Yes…I suppose I do care for her…just as much as you care for those two girls you watch over." Yuuka responded, "She's the closest thing I could call a daughter…She may be a bit prickly at first, but she really is a lovely child once you get to know her…Which is why I try to protect her from the cruelty of this world…She's suffered enough already."

"Miss Kazami, if it isn't too much to ask…Would you happen to know why she holds such contempt for humans?" While it wasn't exactly uncommon to find a youkai who disliked humans; it was a rare occasion to find one who outright despised the species. In fact, many youkai in Gensokyo were either indifferent to them, or simply saw them as a meal rather than an object of hate, or even on a rare occasion, youkai would actually consider humans allies. To find a youkai who held so much hatred for humans was shocking, especially one who was so young-lived. Meiling couldn't help but be curious of how this unbridled hatred could have come to be.

Yuuka paused for a moment to let the question sink in, "Miss Meiling, you wouldn't happen to be familiar of how a Tskumogami comes to be in the world, would you?" Meiling nodded, the process of how Tskumogami were born was both familiar and well-known to her. "Yes, yes…of course you do…then you must also know that a Tskumogami has a much different way of thinking than the more common types of youkai such as ourselves…" Yuuka paused a moment in contemplation before continuing, "You see, Tskumogamis are able to recall every moment of their existence as an inanimate object, as strange as that sounds. The treatment they received in their lives as inanimate objects play a huge factor of what kind of person they'll become once they make the metamorphosis into a full-fledged youkai." Yuuka let out one last bitter sigh before speaking once more, "As you may have already guessed, Medicine had a particularly bitter experience in her days before her life as a youkai…"

* * *

I can't say that I know the entirety of her story; it took a good amount of time for her to finally open up about her past in the first place. But here are the scant few details of her past that she had entrusted me with…She had described her life with her master as being a simple yet happy one. Her master had given her some of the most attentive and loving care a mere plaything could ever garner. That girl was apparently quite attached to little Medicine in her childhood. Much to the point of her master saying some things…though I could never loosen that doll's lips any further on the subject…she's such a secretive girl...

Though of course, you must realize that humans grow and mature much more quickly than we Youkai do...and as an effect, they outgrow the things they favored most of all in their youth once they've achieved adulthood. When this time in a human's life comes, they'll often pass down their playthings of yesterday and give them to their own offspring, with the same going for their children's children and so on. However…Medicine wasn't so fortunate.

Rather than being passed down to the next generation, Medicine's master had other plans in mind…She no longer had no need for a plaything in her life. So rather than giving Medicine up to some child that may have enjoyed her just as much as she had in her youth, she decided to dispose of her. Before Medicine could realize what was happening, she found herself abandoned in a remote field of suzurans. Though it wasn't the most traditional means of disposing of an unwanted object, it was still an effective one in the end.

Her master abandoning her really struck the girl hard, understandably. After all, how would you have felt if the only one you had ever loved and cared about in this world had abandoned you like a piece of garbage, leaving you to wait for them helplessly with the false hope that they just might actually return for you? I myself do not think many would have the mentality to handle something like that at her age.

Days turned to weeks, and weeks into months. Yet Medicine still found herself to be very much so alone. Soon enough, the months had turned into years, some very long and bitter years at that. I can't even begin to comprehend how Medicine must have felt…Sorrow…Anger…Hatred…Betrayal. These feelings were the catalyst that fueled her transformation from an ordinary doll and into a youkai. Seemingly from the moment that life entered her body, she had sworn vengeance against the ones responsible for forsaking to suffer such a horrible fate.

* * *

"…And that is her story to the best of what little knowledge I possess on the subject." Yuuka concluded.

Meiling sat in silence, wearing a sympathetic look as she took in the tale. "I don't know what to say…I'm speechless." Meiling said honestly.

"Understandable." Yuuka replied simply, "I can't say that I knew exactly what to say once she had relayed her story to me. So, now you must be able to see why she despises humans to the point of the mere mentioning of them gets her in a fit."

Meiling responded with a weak nod, taken aback by the revelation of Medicine's miserable past. Yet one thing was still bothering Meiling… "Miss Kazami…Medicine mentioned something about you hating humans as well?"

"Hmmmmm, I suppose she did. I can't honestly say I'm particularly fond of the species…" Yuuka confirmed.

"Why is that? I m-mean, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Well dear, let's just say humans took something precious of mine and leave it at that." Yuuka answered vaguely. The flower youkai exhaled deeply as her mind suddenly appeared to be elsewhere, and her eyes began to drift towards the room's sole window. "…I must say Miss Meiling, that vampire of yours is made of harder stuff than she looks." She commented, abruptly changing the subject, "For a girl of her mentality to be haunted by such dreadful nightmares…her mind must be stronger than it appears."

"What are you going on about, Kazami?" Meiling asked defensively.

"Little Flandre's night-frights of course." Yuuka stated as if it were a commonly known fact, "The girl has been enduring against some pretty nasty dreams as of late from the looks of it…I suppose it's to be expected, when the only family you have in the world sets a price on your head and has you hunted down like a common animal."

Meiling stole a look out of the window behind herself where she could visibly see Koishi and Flandre playing some sort of game together, obviously to get Flandre's mind off of Medicine, "How do you…?"

"Know?" Yuuka finished for her, "Well, let's just say I've had some… past experiences with these sorts of things." Meiling was beginning to become suspicious of Yuuka's recent abundance of vague answers, but set her suspicion aside for the moment.

"Is there any way to help her with these nightmares?"

"Well…no. The ones in charge of these things have quite a firm stance about dreams…no amount of bargaining or pleading would make them fold." Yuuka said with absolute certainty, "However, fortunately for our little friend here, such things won't be necessary."

"And that's supposed to mean…?" Meiling asked in obvious confusion.

"That little satori girl, she has the power over the subconscious. I doubt the girl herself is aware of it, but it'd appear that Miss Komeiji has been helping our vampire friend through her nightmares." An amused smile crept up Yuuka's face as Meiling looked at her with a baffled expression, "This however, is only a temporary fix. The only true way for Flandre to ever truly be relieved of these nightmares is to face the source of her fears, when the time for that comes…she will have to do it alone." The flower youkai said grimly, "But once she's faced these fears…she will need you and Miss Koemeiji to be there for her, to support her."

Meiling silently nodded with a sense of determination in the action. Yuuka smiled in approval and slowly stood up from her seat, stretching a bit with a groan. "My…how has it become so late in the day? Now, Miss Meiling why don't you go and spend some time with those precious little girls? I'm sure they'd enjoy your company."

"I think I'll do that." Meiling replied, "But what will you be doing then?"

"Oh don't fret about me…I just have a doll to go look for." Yuuka responded with a smirk as she exited the room with umbrella in hand. As Meiling watched the flower youkai depart, she found herself not watching a monster, but rather a person. The gatekeeper soon enough left to do just as Yuuka had suggested, leaving the massive mansion empty.

Taking a step out to the courtyard, Meiling took in a fresh breath of air. The Garden of the Sun's air felt like it was completely and utterly pure, somehow more pure than the rest of the air in Gensokyo. The gatekeeper supposed it was just another one of the odd qualities of the garden. Flandre and Koishi soon took notice of the gatekeeper's presence and began to run towards her gleefully.

"China, China! You wanna play with us?" Flandre asked in childish excitement, with the recent events involving Medicine out of her mind for the time being.

Meiling couldn't help but smile at that, "Of course, I'd love to! What are we playing?"

"Ummmm…What do you think we should play Koi-Koi?" Flandre asked uncertainly.

Koishi simply shrugged, "I dunno…But I'm getting tired of tag…" The two exchanged looks with one another as they began to contemplate on what activity to partake in.

The gatekeeper let out a laugh at that, despite their current situation with Remilia's bounty and the high probability of being hunted down by Gensokyo's finest in an attempt to claim the reward, Flandre and Koishi's childish nature always managed to brighten her mood. "Well, while you two think that over, let me ask you something. Where would you like to go next? We need a plan; we can't just walk around aimlessly forever, after all."

Flandre began to scratch her chin in thought as she pondered the gatekeeper's question, "…I dunno…There's just too many places to go to…Why don't you pick Koi-Koi?" the vampire asked.

"Well I…I wanna go visit my big sis and all of her pets!" Koishi proclaimed happily. Flandre nodded in agreement with the idea wearing a small smile.

"Sounds good to me," Meiling said, making the decision unanimous, "Now… where exactly does this sister of yours live, Koishi?"

"Oh um…Somewhere right…around…here!" Koishi pointed down towards the ground, causing Meiling to grow perplexed.

"Ummmm, Your sister lives in the ground?" Meiling asked skeptically.

"What? Of course not! Who said that silly? She lives at the Palace of the Earth Spirits in Former Hell!" Koishi clarified happily.

"Ah, now that makes a lot more sense…" Meiling replied sheepishly. In retrospect it was a foolish question to ask, after all, what remained of the Satori had been sealed underground along with all of the other youkai deemed too dangerous to be allowed in Gensokyo.

Normally Meiling would try to avoid going into such a perilous place full of dangerous youkai, not to mention evil spirits, but with their current situation, Former Hell would be much safer than any other place in Gensokyo. News from the surface usually took quite a long while to travel to the underground, if it ever did at all. The capital of Former Hell would be the perfect place to catch a breather from the constant need to stay on the move to avoid any potential bounty hunters.

"But there's only one problem with that plan…I don't know of any easily accessible routes into the underground." Meiling said.

"Ooh, I know one!" Koishi replied cheerfully.

"Really now? Where would this route be?" Meiling asked curiously.

"Alllllllllllllll the way up there!" Koishi cheered as she pointed her finger into the distance.

Meiling slowly turned to where the satori had pointed, only for her jaw to drop wide open. The satori had pointed towards the summit of Gensokyo's largest mountain, Youkai Mountain. In what the area lacked in name creativity, it more than made up with danger. The Tengu on the mountain were very territorial, and would attack any outsiders who dared an attempt to scale the mountain. Not to mention the sheer size of the landform, it took quite a while to scale the mountain even while flying, Meiling couldn't even imagine how long it'd take them to reach the top by foot…

"Wow…" Flandre gasped in amazement as she stared at the mountain with awe.

"All…All the way up there…?" Meiling stuttered out in disbelief.

"Uh-huh!"

"Well then…this'll be one very long and tiring trip…" Meiling adjusted her beret as she stared at the mountain, dreading the long journey ahead of them.

* * *

Most people would have become horribly lost in the ginormous Garden of the Sun by now. The garden's lack of landmarks made losing one's way easy; in that sense it was quite similar to the Bamboo Forest of the Lost. Luckily for Yuuka being accustomed to the garden's layout, she had no problem traversing her way through mazelike landscape. Finding Medicine however, was another story.

The doll was deceivingly skilled at hiding herself, making it all the easier for her to attack unsuspecting humans. Yuuka had to admit that finding her would be a challenge, even with her having the home-field advantage. Yuuka carefully scanned the area for any possible trails the Tskumogami could have left as she made her way through the garden, trying to be as thorough as possible in her search. As her eyes carefully picked out each and every detail in her surroundings, the flower youkai quickly found it unnecessary as she caught sight of a small object flying just above the field of sunflowers. The object that was easily identified as Medicine's constant companion seemed to have noticed Yuuka as well, as it began to zip towards her as quickly as its small wings would allow it.

"Good evening little one," Yuuka greeted, "You wouldn't happen to know where your master would be, would you?"

The doll quickly nodded in response and motioned her over before flying off towards the direction that Yuuka could only assume to be where Medicine was at. The flower youkai followed her guide through the vast garden at her own sluggish pace; Yuuka was not one to rush into things after all.

Before long, her small guide had abruptly stopped at the edge of one of the scarce clearings within the garden, its size was not particularly great, making it quite easy to overlook. It was there that the little blonde-girl sat alone, hugging her legs as she stared down at the ground.

Yuuka sighed in relief as she finally found the Tskumogami, "Medicine."

"…Yuuka." Medicine said back, remaining motionless.

The flower youkai began to silently traipse her way to the lone girl, with her silent companion flying alongside her fearfully, hiding behind Yuuka's shoulder as they finally closed the distance between the Tskumogami and themselves. The two youkai sat in silence for what felt like hours before Yuuka finally composed herself, "Medicine, we need to talk."

"Why on earth would I want to talk to traitor like _you_?"

"Come now dear…you know I didn't mean it like that…" Yuuka said, genuinely hurt by the Tskumogami's harsh words. "Will you at least hear me out?"

Medicine gave no answer aside from a grunt of indifference. Yuuka took it as her cue to continue, "Dear, I know what the humans did to you was unforgiveable and completely unacceptable…Quite honestly I can't at all blame you. But getting angry about it won't solve your problems."

"Hrmph, easy for you to say, after all it's all just _nothing_ to you, isn't it?" Medicine spat in disgust.

"Far from it, dear." Yuuka replied calmly, garnering a confused look from the Tskumogami, "I have no love for mankind; the world could be rid of them for all I care. They took away something of mine… something that I'll never be able to replace or get back from them."

She evidently had Medicine's attention by the end of her last sentence as the doll looked at the elder youkai intently, like a small child wishing to hear the conclusion of a bedtime story. "…What did they take from you?" she asked after a brief moment of silence.

"My innocence." Medicine's jaw dropped in shear bafflement at the conclusion of the flower youkai's sentence. How could Yuuka Kazami, the feared mistress of the Garden of the Sun, have been…defiled by a human? Yuuka noticed Medicine's bewildered expression and quickly corrected her, "Not in the sense your thinking, dear."

"In what other sense could you possibly be talking about then?" the Tskumogami asked impatiently.

"My sense of wonder. They took away that blissful ignorance of the cruelties of the world that only a child could possess." Yuuka clarified, "They made it painfully obvious to me that a world devoid of pain and misery was nothing but a foolish dream." Vivid images of fields of flowers set aflame and enraged townspeople armed with weapons and torches burned fresh in Yuuka's mind, along with the sounds of the villager's contempt filled cursing and her own screams of horrid agony. These images were soon replaced by the sight of her own blood covered hands and the terrified expressions of the townspeople along with the sound of her attacker's cries of pain and pleas of mercy soon filling her ears. Soon everything went silent, aside from her laughter; she stared up at the moon laughing as if she had been told the funniest joke ever told as she stood on the blood drenched field that was once her garden.

Coming back to reality, Yuuka continued her spiel, "In that sense, you and I are the same. We've both been wronged by the monsters of this land. Both of us see this world's true nature all too clearly." Medicine gave a gruff nod in agreement as she stared at the sky that was painted a brilliant orange color by the sun with a blank look in her eyes. "So what do you say? Will you forgive me for the lack of thought behind my words?"

Medicine sighed and let her eyes travel from the sky and to Yuuka's crimson eyes, "I suppose…" the doll youkai muttered, managing to muster a small smile for Yuuka to show her sincerity, pleasing the flower youkai greatly as she returned a smile of her own.

"Let's go home then, my dear."

* * *

**A/N: Originally I never thought this chapter would past five-thousand words, much less take as long as it did to write...yet here we are, close to six-thousand words and weeks later. Ah well, what're you going to do? I'm satisfied with how this came out, considering I was hating how it was coming out near the beginning, I actually ended up redoing the first stretch entirely.**** xP  
**

**Well, next chapter we can finally get the plot-rolling again. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, hopefully you'll enjoy the next.(Once I give DD an overdue update of course...) Til' next time, folks.  
**


	24. Chapter 24: Falling Ambition

"Leaving so soon? I'd be more than happy to accommodate you longer…" Yuuka asked as Meiling finished packing what few belongings she and her band owned, "In fact, I insist you stay. Your company has been quite nice to be honest."

The gatekeeper shook her head in refusal, "Thanks for the offer, Miss Kazami, but we had better be on our way now. I'd like to get a good start on our trek up the mountain before nightfall, and I'd hate to impose on you further, you've done more than enough for us by allowing us to rest in your mansion last night."

"Hmmmm, well I won't stop you then. Just be sure to keep those girls out of trouble, the Tengu aren't especially known to be hospitable to outsiders." warned Yuuka, "Oh, and do be sure to drop by again sometime, my doors are always open to friends."

"We'll be sure to," Meiling replied with a grin, "But uh…Miss Kazami?"

"Yes dear?"

"I'm uh…I'm sorry for how I treated you when we first met…It was quite rude of me. I hope you may forgive me for my lack of manners…" Meiling apologized, bowing as if to emphasize the remorse for her actions.

The flower youkai let out a laugh, "Oh it's quite alright dear, after all, it's not as if I treated you any better when we first met either. Just a misunderstanding is all."

"Right." Meiling nodded, "Are you two ready to go?" the gatekeeper asked Flandre and Koishi, both of whom looked like they were speaking with Medicine, though the doll looked more like she was spectating the conversation rather than actually taking part in it.

Medicine surely didn't become any more social since their first meeting but she did seem much calmer than the day before. The Tskumogami's mood surely hadn't changed either, but the fact that she wasn't wearing a murderous glare while looking at Koishi was definitely an improvement.

"Just one sec!" Flandre answered back to the gatekeeper before continuing her seemingly one sided conversation with the Tskumogami, "I'm glad we gotta meet Meddy, I hope I see you again someday!" the vampire said happily.

The Doll youkai remained stoic, "Mmmmmm, I suppose I could say the same despite your seeming lack of taste in allies…" Medicine muttered.

"Ah, you know you like us!" Koishi said bashfully, "I just hope you're less of a stick in the mud next time we meet!"

"And I hope you're less of an insufferably obnoxious twit, yet somehow I don't think I should hold my breath." Medicine growled back. The Tskumogami's doll companion began to edge away from its larger counterpart in fear of a possible brawl between the two, looking to make a break for it at the slightest sign of conflict. Flandre couldn't help but share the doll's concerns as she slowly backed away from the two as well.

Koishi however shrugged off her remark and kept a smile on her face despite Medicine's rather offensive comment, "I'll miss you too!" Koishi cried as she gave Medicine what appeared to be a very painful hug if the Tskumigami's bulging eyes were any indication to its strength. Flandre couldn't resist joining in the hug as well, as she wrapped her arms around the doll-youkai's body and joined in the pair's hug; much to Medicine's furthered annoyance.

The Tskumogami remained silent as the satori released her, only averting her eyes, blushing with rosy cheeks, something that probably should have been impossible for her body to do with its lack of blood. The vampire gave the Tskumogami a small wave goodbye as she traipsed back over to her red-headed guardian along with Koishi. Through the corner of her eye, she caught a small glimpse of Medicine sheepishly returning her wave as she continued avoiding any sort of eye contact with the pair whatsoever. Flandre couldn't help but giggle at the girl's shyness as she rejoined Meiling, who had concluded her business with Yuuka.

The flower youkai wore a snide grin as she watched the cheerful pair of Flandre and Koishi approach; or rather the blonde-girl behind them, who's face hadn't become any less red. Medicine didn't speak a word, yet the nasty look she was giving Yuuka expressed her feelings well enough. Yuuka didn't seem to mind the threatening scowl Medicine was shooting her, and addressed her departing guests, "Well dearies, it was fun, I hope you've enjoyed yourselves during your brief stay, and I pray that your journey will be a safe one. Just do be sure to keep yourselves out of trouble…that goes double for you, Miss Komeiji."

"Hey! What's supposed to mean Moss-head?" Koishi said indignantly, crossing her arms as if to show her displeasure at Yuuka's comment. Meiling and Flandre groaned together at both the satori's ignorance of her own actions during their stay, and her astonishing lack of manners. Medicine turned her glare from Yuuka to Koishi, who looked as if she took more offense at the name Koishi had thrown towards her friend than Yuuka herself did.

Yuuka as always didn't seem particularly offended at being referred to as 'Moss-head', and seemed more amused than she did insulted. With a motherly grin Yuuka swiped Koishi's hat from her head and began to ruffle her silver-colored mess of hair, "Oh nothing dear, nothing at all." She said with a chuckle as she handed the girl her hat back. The satori then proceeded to meekly return her ink-black headwear back to its rightful place on her head with cheeks more than red enough to match Medicine's.

"Thanks again for all you've done Miss Kazami. Your hospitality was greatly appreciated." Meiling said gratefully as she gave Yuuka yet another bow in gratitude. Flandre and Koishi also murmured their own thanks as they mimicked the gatekeeper's actions to the best of their ability despite lacking the amount of grace Meiling possessed.

"Not a problem, safe travels." The flower youkai said in turn as she kept a hand on the much shorter Tskumogami beside her, who still kept her lips pursed as she kept her eyes trained away from Flandre and Koishi specifically.

The three finally bid the two farewell as they headed out of the Garden of the Sun, and towards their next destination, Youkai Mountain. A feared flower youkai who loved children and a doll that was forgotten in a field of toxic flowers who despises humanity…They had certainly met some interesting people in their travels, but those two surely stood out among the rest as the most unlikely pair of friends. With their time with the two of them over, Meiling couldn't help but wonder what other sorts of people they'd encounter on their adventure…

* * *

The Scarlet Devil Mansion's residents had long since calmed down since the news of the mistress's little sister escaping her prison underneath the mansion and running loose out in Gensokyo, along with the fact that none other than the mansion's trusted gatekeeper had been the one who made her escape possible. The mansion's many employees went about their usual schedule as if Flandre was still cooped up in her small room in the basement. The only indication the fairy maids were even aware of the little sister's escape was when they made their remarks of surprise to one another that Gensokyo hadn't been completely obliterated, much less been transformed into a hellish nightmare with Flandre prowling about before being scolded at by the head maid to stop slacking off and get back to work.

The only denizen of the mansion who didn't seem to calm down one bit since the dirty little secret's departure was the mansion's mistress herself. Remilia remained secluded in her study, with her only visitors being her most trusted maid, Sakuya, and the mansion's resident bookworm and close confident to Remilia, Patchouli. At all other times she remained in solitude, only coming out from the room to eat her meals before returning to her study in silence.

The Scarlet Devil had seen better days, she had heavy bags under her eyes, indicating that she hasn't had a good night's sleep in quite some time, and it was now painfully evident that she had lost a good few pounds, as her usual attire began to look like it had grown two sizes too big for her. Her usually bright red crimson eyes that glowed with confidence and certainty were now dull and almost devoid of life.

Her drowsy gaze remained focused on one thing in the room, the picture of herself along with her younger sister. The picture had begun to wither over time, it had begun to fade and scratches marred its surface. The picture was lucky to still be in one piece, it had been taken over hundreds of years ago, back when she was still a mere mortal, before she had become a creature of the night. It was impossible to interpret what was going through the vampire's mind as she stared at the portrait in an almost trance like state, her eyes focused solely on the image of her sister and nothing else. She had been in such a deep trance that she hadn't noticed Sakuya step into the room, who was wearing a concerned expression as she wordlessly, watched the shadow of her former master stare at the photograph, not looking to snap out of her thoughts anytime soon.

Sakuya gave a soft grunt to garner her master's attention and alert her to her presence. It did the trick, as Remilia jumped surprise, wearing a bewildered expression before realizing that the source of sudden noise was none other than her head maid. The Scarlet Devil calmed herself and wiped her weary eyes before addressing her loyalist servant, "Good evening Sakuya…Forgive me for my lack of attention…my mind was…elsewhere…" Remilia mustered a smile, one that was missing its familiar charismatic air it brought with it.

Sakuya frowned at her master's greeting, "Milady, it's no longer the evening, it is now morning." The maid said in a matter of fact tone.

Remilia stole a look out of the room's sole window to confirm her head-maid's statement, to find that the evening had indeed long passed, with the morning sun rising up from the horizon. "O-Of course it is…How silly of me. Our new gatekeeper's veil of shadow had fooled me into thinking it was the evening…" Remilia stuttered out nervously.

Sakuya resisted the urge to sigh, her master had been letting her health slip away little by little to the point that she had resorted to making some very obviously thin excuses for herself. The little youkai girl that they had employed as Meiling's temporary replacement did indeed give off a shadowy aura, but not even close to the extent that it could fool anyone that it was night time unless they stood right next to her.

Despite her better judgment, the maid kept silent, as the perfect maid it wasn't her place to question her master whatsoever, only follow each and every one of her commands with obedience and without question to the best of her abilities. "I see, then I'll have to have a word with our new gatekeeper about keeping that cloud of darkness under control. That issue aside, I have brought news of the hunt. It would seem that there was recently an immensely bright source of light emanating nearby the Garden of the Sun. It's believed that the young mistress Flandre and Meiling were involved according to some sources, I can't ensure how accurate that theory is however, as it did come from Aya Shameimaru's mouth…" Sakuya couldn't stand the crow tengu. She always seemed to poke her nose in the mansion's resident's business every hour of the day, whether it was news worthy or not. Why Remilia put up with her obnoxious behavior all these years was incomprehensible to her.

Remilia became wide awake and alert at the mentioning of her sister, almost jumping out of her seat at the sound of her sister's name. "R-Really now? News is news, regardless of whose mouth it came from…" Remilia replied with a distant look in her eyes, it felt as if the vampire were in deep thought over the news that was brought to her attention. "…Sakuya, I'll be going out momentarily." The noble vampire announced as she tiredly pushed herself up from her oversized chair before clumsily making her way to the door.

"Then I shall accompany you, mistress." Sakuya said as she helped steady the tipsy vampire as she stumbled her way across the room.

"N-No…You stay here and keep the other maids in line…I'll be fine…really." Remilia reassured, as she brushed her loyal maid away dismissively.

"Are you certain mistress? Not to mean you any disrespect…but you haven't seemed well as of late. You should rest."

"I said I'll be fine, Sakuya." Remilia replied, "It's just a small personal excursion, I'll be back before the sun sets, I assure you. Now do as I say."

"…Yes, forgive me for questioning your orders, my lady." Sakuya said reluctantly as she gave her mistress a swift bow.

Remilia gave her maid a nod in satisfaction before striding pass her, stepping out of the study for the first time in days. Sakuya watched her mistress's scrawny figure slowly creep down the blood-red halls with concern wracked eyes before letting out a deep sigh; it wasn't easy being the only competent maid in the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Perhaps some housework would get her mind off of her master's deteriorating health…

* * *

The Youkai Mountain's great size alone was enough to inspire awe, but even closer up; the mountain was an otherworldly beauty to behold. The mountain had several cascading waterfalls, including one immensely ginormous one that fed a great spring at the foot of the mountain. One of the mountain's odder yet most beautiful qualities were the red and orange colored tree-tops, Meiling wasn't quite sure how it was possible for trees to come in that shade at this time of the year, as Autumn was still a good few months off. She soon disregarded it and settled with just admiring their beauty, just as her two companions currently were.

"Wow…Look at all the colors!" Flandre exclaimed in utter amazement as she pointed in various directions excitedly.

Meiling smirked at the vampire's excitement, it was always amusing to her how excited she became over the simplest of things…though that would be expected for someone who had never gotten the opportunity the experience the world before in their long years of life.

Koishi also seemed to be enthralled by the mountain's scenery, as her mouth made a perfect circle as she looked around her surroundings with just as much child-like excitement as Flandre was. "Yeah…It's so pretty…" the satori gasped.

Before they could admire the mountain's beauty any further, they were interrupted by a newcomer "Halt! Don't take another step forward!" a familiarly strict voice bellowed at the three.

The three looked upwards towards the source of the voice in surprise, finding a woman with hair as white as snow looking down upon them from her perch atop a nearby cliff. The woman looked like she was ready to go to war, as she wielded a wickedly sharp blade in one hand, and a large shield with a leaf design etched on it in the other. The woman was obviously in peak physical condition, as both items looked like they would require the strength of both hands to handle their weight, yet she held both with ease with only one hand. Her most noticeable feature was the pair of wolf ears that poked out of her short hair along with the bushy wolf-tail protruding from her backside. Meiling gasped as she immediately recognized the woman.

"Momiji? Momiji Inubashiri?" at the sound of her name, the white wolf tengu's ears perked up and her stance relaxed.

"Oh…It's you. I see you've found your companion." Momiji states as she stared at Flandre, studying the vampire closely before sheathing her weapon and jumping down from the cliff, joining the three down below.

"That I did." Meiling nodded, "Thank you for the help before, it was appreciated."

"No need to thank me, I really wasn't all too helpful in your search…" Momiji muttered as she scratched the back of her ear sheepishly.

"Regardless, you could have just ignored me all together. So thank you for sparing a few moments of your time. I couldn't have found Flandre here without your help." As the two guards conversed, Flandre and Koishi showed great confusion as the two of them shared furrowed brows, obviously lost in the conversation. Meiling took notice of their confusion and began to explain, "Oh, how could I forget…This is Momiji Inubashiri, she helped me out a bit after we got separated that one time...that was also sometime around when you joined us, Koishi." The vampire and satori seemed to find that explanation satisfactory, as their looks of confusion faded away.

"Hi! I'm Flandre!" the vampire introduced herself cheerfully, giving a small curtsy to the white wolf who simply nodded in acknowledgement.

"Howdy! I'm Koishi! Your tail looks really soft…" the satori greeted with an extended hand. Momiji gave the girl a bemused look before accepting her hand and giving it a firm shake. Koishi's straight forwardness never ceased to amaze her two companions; the girl never seemed to have any qualms with speaking her mind, no matter what thoughts just so happened to be sitting in her head at the given moment.

"Aha! Your names confirmed my suspicions…I thought I recognized you three…You've three have been quite a popular topic back in the village lately." Momiji stated as a spark of realization flared in her eyes.

"We…We have been?" Meiling asked with worry.

Momiji nodded, confirming the gatekeeper's fears. "Yes, you have. You're all the Tengu have been talking about; you three on the front-page of almost every news-publication on the mountain actually! I can't believe I didn't recognize you when we first met…" Momiji murmured as she fidgeted with her detached sleeves in mild embarrassment.

Meiling groaned in frustration, she soon resorted to pulling at her long locks of red hair to relieve her new-found stress. "Lovely…the last thing we need is attention…" the white wolf gave a sympathetic look as the gatekeeper muttered curses underneath her breath of her dreadful luck.

"Ahem…Yes, sorry about that…As much as it shames me to admit it, you really can't keep anything from my people…once the Tengu find a good source of news, they milk it for all its worth until a new story comes along…"the white wolf admitted shamefully, "But enough about my kind's more shameful pass-times…What brings you three to the mountain?" Momiji asked, changing the subject hastily. The white-wolf obviously didn't approve of what the majority of her race did with their spare-time; personally Meiling couldn't blame her in the slightest.

"We're gonna climb the mountain and go visit my big sis!" Koishi proclaimed happily.

"Ah, you must be the little sister of that satori who owns that hell raven who ate the Yatagarasu then…" Momiji said as she scratched her chin in thought, "As much as I'd like to let you pass, I cannot shrug off my responsibilities as one of the mountain's guardians and turn an eye from intruders…" the tengu suddenly produced a small deck of cards from her sleeves, "Not without a fight anyways."

At a glance, one would think Momiji had taken out a simple deck of cards, but at a closer look, the cards were easily identified as spell-cards. They were used daily to resolve disagreements in Gensokyo without bringing about any fatalities through Danmaku battles, a system devised by the Hakurei family to give the humans of Gensokyo a fair chance at surviving an encounter with a youkai. Though most youkai had no qualms with the system whatsoever, many youkai still preferred to solve their problems the old fashioned way, with their claws and fangs.

"A spell-card duel?" Meiling asked in mild surprise, with all of the fighting she had gone through the last few days without them, she had almost forgotten about the system.

Momiji nodded, "Yes, I can't let any intruders on the mountain without at least slowing them down, my honor wouldn't allow it!" the white wolf shouted with a sense of pride in her words. Meiling couldn't help but admire her devotion to her duties.

"Alright then, let's-"

"Ooh! Danmaku? Can I play!?" Flandre cried in excitement as she stared at Momiji's cards with interest.

The gatekeeper had nearly forgotten how much of a passion Flandre had with danmaku battles. When she first introduced her to the system, the vampire immediately became enthralled with it, demanding a good-natured round of the game every time she visited her until she eventually became bored with it. You could only battle the same opponent after so long without eventually tiring of it, after all.

"Heh, of course you can, Flandre." Meiling said happily, "As long as that's alright with you of course, Momiji."

"I don't care who I battle, just so long as you manage to defeat me, I won't impede your path any fur-THER!" Momiji yelped as her tail was given a firm tug from behind. The white wolf swiftly turned around to face the suspect, only to find that it had been Koishi, who was still tugging on her tail with interest, stroking its fur in a carefree manner.

"Wow! Your tail REALLY is soft Miss Wolf!" Koishi said cheerfully as she rubbed it against her face.

Momiji pulled her tail away defensively, with her cheeks turning as red as a tomato. "P-Please don't t-touch my tail…" Momiji said with a quivering voice as she made sure to keep her tail out of the satori's grasp.

"Koishi, get over here…" Meiling groaned as she guided gestured the satori over with a stern expression, who complied willingly enough. "Ahem…Sorry about that…Sometimes Koishi has a hard time understanding when she's in people's boundaries…" Meiling said apologetically.

"It's fine…Just…Just don't do that again…" Momiji replied, regaining a little of her composure after the invasion of her personal space. "Anyways…Do you accept this duel?"

With a toothy-grin, Flandre gave the white-wolf tengu an excited nod, obviously overjoyed at the notion at being able to participate in a danmaku duel after so long. "Uh-huh! Let's play!" the vampire chirped as she materialized her own deck of cards.

"Very well, we shall use three cards each. Just be warned, don't expect me to go easy on you just because you're young." Momiji said as she began to float off of the ground in anticipation for the spell-card battle that was about to begin.

"Be careful Flandre, and good luck!" said Meiling.

"Go Flanny! Go knock her socks off!" Koishi cheered enthusiastically, flailing her arms around in support.

The vampire smiled fondly at the two, "Thanks! I'll do my best!" Flandre then began to hover off the ground herself, joining the white-wolf high above in the sky.

As she reached Momiji's altitude, the tengu unsheathed her fearsome sword. Its blade shone brightly in the sunlight, serving to make the weapon all the more imposing, "Now, let's begin, shall we? Dog Sign: 'Rabies Bite'!"

* * *

With the departure of its three guests, the Garden of the Sun had begun to quiet down. Things at the garden were beginning to return to normal, or at least as normal as things could become in Gensokyo. The garden's owner was taking a sip of tea as she relaxed in a lawn-chair that almost appeared to be made of plants, and considering the Flower youkai's power, few would doubt that it was just as it appeared, a chair constructed completely of plants. Her lone guest sat next to her quietly, passing the time by reading an awfully thick looking tome. The book strangely enough didn't appear to have any sort of title, as both of its covers were both blank, only having golden borders along the sides of its pitch-black cover. Despite knowing the girl for quite some time now, Yuuka was never able to figure out just how Medicine came to be in possession of such strange objects, the doll surely didn't have any sort of spare change to purchase them with after all.

The Flower youkai watched the Tskumogami with a wide grin, watching her flip through the pages of her book closely. Medicine soon noticed the look her companion was giving her, and gave Yuuka a look of complete aggravation. "What's so amusing, Yuuka?" she asked as she discerned that she was the object of Yuuka's amusement.

"Oh nothing dear…I just couldn't help but remember how flustered you looked when those two girls embraced you. It was just too precious…" the flower youkai said mockingly.

The mentioning of the event immediately caused the Tskumogami's cheeks to relight with a crimson hue, shoving her face into her book to hide her embarrassment. "I…I have no clue what you're talking about, Yuuka. Perhaps you've sat in the sun for too long…" the Tskumogami said as she tried desperately to maintain her composure.

"I'm not sure if that's possible, sitting in the sun would do nothing but good for a flower youkai like me, dear." Yuuka replied smugly, looking to be enjoying every moment of the conversation, she oh so did enjoy making people squirm after all. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you almost looked like you enjoyed that display of affection, Miss heartless youkai."

"I'd have preferred to have been run through with a rusty blade than even be touched by those two." Medicine hissed defensively.

Her response only amused Yuuka further, who burst into laughter, causing Medicine's entire face to burn bright with embarrassment. "I'm sure you would have dear, those few moments of those two touching you must have been the most agonizing of tortures!"

"Don't patronize me." Medicine growled as she gave the flower youkai the cold shoulder and continued reading from where she last left off. Despite her best efforts, she was still unable to hide her rosy colored cheeks in the least from the older youkai. Her tiny companion stood atop her shoulders giving her what could only be assumed was a befuddled look of confusion.

"Oh don't take things so seriously Medicine; I'm only yanking your chain here." Yuuka said with her grin of amusement still firmly stretched across her face. "Besides, it's nothing to be ashamed of…I'm glad you're making friends, dear."

Yuuka's last remark had apparently been the last straw, as the Tskumogami stood up without a word, and gave Yuuka the stink eye. "I'll be taking my leave now." Medicine announced as she slowly made her way to the large expanse of sunflowers surrounding the mansion. Her small counterpart followed after her anxiously, looking unsure of the reason of her sudden departure.

"Oh come now, I didn't mean anything by it. I'm simply happy that you've been making friends…I won't be around forever after all."

Medicine paused for a moment, taking a glance back at the flower youkai. "…It's getting late, I'll see you tomorrow." With that, the Tskumogami brushed past the wall of sunflowers, disappearing from sight completely. Her constant companion, Su-san looked towards the direction in which her master had gone in uncertainly before joining her within the forest of flowers, leaving the Flower Youkai completely alone.

The flower youkai let out a deep sigh, "…I suppose she's just coming to be of that age…" with that, Yuuka stood from her seat, allowing the vines that her chair was composed of seep back into the earth as she made her way back into her home to prepare her evening meal. As she opened the large doors to her large abode, she couldn't help but wonder why the Tskumogami had elected to walk rather than just fly home. The girl certainly was an oddity for her age...

* * *

As Medicine made her way through Yuuka's seemingly endless garden, she couldn't help but enjoy how peaceful and quiet the garden was. Though of course, Yuuka's reputation in Gensokyo kept both humans and youkai maintaining a large berth from the garden. Only the occasional human with an exceptionally large ego or a youkai that was just a little too sure in their strength would ever even dare to take a step in Yuuka's territory. Of course, those sorts of people were never heard from again, aside from the youkai, but they were often unable to form any sentences coherent enough to piece together what had happened. This only served to bolster Yuuka's already fearsome reputation.

One day Medicine hoped to garner herself as much fear from the humans as Yuuka did. She wasn't an exceptionally well-known, much less, respected youkai at the moment. Perhaps one day that would all change…

Medicine sat down on the grass under her feet in a small clearing, deciding to enjoy a silence that rarely ever occurred in Gensokyo. Taking a deep breath, her mouth formed a rarely seen smile as she watched the sun make its way towards the end of its journey across the sky, the night was only a few short hours away, perhaps the only time that Gensokyo was as quiet as the suzuran field and the Garden of the Sun were.

"Enjoying yourself?" a strange, distorted, feminine sounding voice asked suddenly, causing the Tskumogami to jump up in shock. Medicine scanned the area quickly, trying to identify the origin of the voice; Su-San also appeared to be trying to pick out the source, as she slowly jittered back and forth. "I see I have your attention, good. Now, I have a small question for you..."

Medicine was in deep concentration, trying to deduce where whoever the voice belonged to was hiding so she could give them a proper beating for disturbing her. "Oh? Why should an innocent, helpless little girl like me give you the answer to anything?" Medicine replied, as her eyes shifted back and forth in search of her target.

"Well…I could just follow you around and pester you until you tell me what I'd like to know…" the voice giggled innocently. The voice seemed to be coming from all directions, making it impossible to identify where it was coming from, and with the light from the sun becoming dimmer and dimmer as it slowly traveled across the sky made it difficult to locate the owner of the voice by sight as well.

Medicine gritted her teeth in frustration. Combined with being unable to discern the location of the voice's owner and the arrogance of her unknown company; she was beginning to lose her patience with this unwelcome individual. "Very well then, what is that you want?" the Tskumogami said as she persisted on her hunt for whoever had the audacity to hide themselves from her like a pitiful coward, like a lowlife human…

"The vampire. Where is she?"

Medicine snickered at the question, "My, this is what you do with your spare time? Stalk innocent little maidens like me? What a disgusting recreational activity to take part in." the disembodied voice let out a feral growl, obviously not at all amused by Medicine's words. The Tskumogami grew a large grin, obviously finding great pleasure in the unknown being's response.

"Enough lip, Tskumogami. Just tell me where she and her friends went and I'll be out of your hair in no time." The voice said in a raspy growl.

Looking carefully Medicine could catch a small glimpse of her unwanted company, who was taking cover within the field of flowers. The being had an average sized frame, about the height of a human teenager; she appeared to be glaring impatiently at Medicine with her crimson colored eyes. Protruding from her back appeared to be some sort of appendages, the Tskumogami couldn't catch a proper look at them due to her diminishing light source from the sun and the flowers obscuring her vision, the most she could tell is that they were most likely wings. Winged youkai in Gensokyo weren't exactly in a short-abundance after all.

"Hrmph, fine, I'll tell you. Anything to get you away from me you filthy troglodyte..." Medicine grumbled, causing the stranger to grin widely at Medicine's compliance. But unbeknownst, the Tskumogami had no plans on letting her shadowy new acquaintance from walking away unscathed. "If you must know the vampire and her companions left for Youkai Mountain earlier today."

"Youkai Mountain eh? Much appreciated kid. See ya." The voice said nonchalantly.

"Leaving so soon?" Medicine asked sarcastically, "Well here's a little goodbye present from me to you, friend…" without any sort of warning, the Tskumogami lobbed a silver-bladed knife that had a strange glean to it right at the figure of shadowy person. The being's eyes went wide as the knife shot directly towards her face, letting out a terrified yelp in surprise.

Rather than hearing the being's agonized screaming from the pain of both the blade cutting into her skull and the toxins that would soon spread across her body from the poison covered blade, like Medicine had expected, all she could hear was the being's annoying, condescending laughter. Growling in anger, Medicine found that the girl had easily avoided the knife. "A feisty one, aren't we? Here's your little toy back…" the woman laughed as she tossed the blade at Medicine's feet, reawakening the Tskumogami's fury in full as she clenched her fists by her sides in outrage. "Now if you'll excuse me…I have a vampire to find. Farewell, little doll, better luck next time." The voice chuckled mockingly.

The Tskumogami growled in anger, waiting for the despicably smug being to make her departure so she could get a good look at who had looked down upon her as if she weren't even worth the dirt on their shoes. But all the Tskumogami could see was a lone bat flying out from the field, looking down upon the Tskumogami arroganlty with its small pair of beady red eyes. Medicine was now alone, with only the sound of Yuuka's sunflowers dancing in the wind to give her any comfort as she watched bat's form set off towards the Youkai Mountain.

* * *

"H-How is this possible…? How could I have lost?" Momiji asked herself in disbelief, still unnerved by the vampire's insane amount of power. The wolf still couldn't believe she was bested so quickly by such a childish girl. Despite her appearance, the vampire was quite the powerhouse, her spell-cards nearly felt akin to the apocalypse. Momiji was thankful enough of her clothing remained to retain her modesty, she shuddered at the thought of having to return to the village in such a state, not to mention the headlines that would appear on nearly every publication there… "I haven't felt such shame since those two humans defeated me without putting forth even an ounce of effort…Ohhhhhh…I'm going to get an earful from Aya if she ever catches wind of this…" the tengu groaned in despair.

"Hahaha, don't worry Momi! Our lips are sealed!" Flandre giggled reassuringly to the defeated warrior, "Thanks for playing with me! I hope we can do this again sometime!"

"That's…appreciated. Thank you." Momiji said sheepishly, her eyes trying to avoid looking at the one who had defeated her with ease. "Well, a deal is a deal, you defeated me honorably. I won't hinder your path any further. Though I cannot say the same for any of my kin or the other residents of the mountain…take care, while many of the inhabitants on the mountain are peaceful, they can also be territorial, stay alert."

"We'll keep that in mind, thank you for the advice. And I apologize for causing you so much trouble…heh…" Meiling said sympathetically, looking at the state Momiji was in dredged up some painful memories of all the times she took a Master Spark to the face during one of Marisa's numerous 'visits.' The life of a guard certainly wasn't one free of hardships, even more so when your employer didn't take kindly to failure…

"I've dealt with worse…" Momiji replied weakly as she dusted off her tattered skirt, it didn't take a close eye to tell that it would need a good amount of mending before it was restored to its former glory.

Meiling could sense white-wolf was obviously quite a prideful individual; she was hiding her true feelings of her defeat if her chi's state was any indication. It was now missing the spark the gatekeeper had sensed from her as she had dueled Flandre. It would take far more time for her to lick the wounds her psyche received from this battle than it would for the wounds her body had sustained.

"All the same, I'm sorry for all the trouble we've caused you. Good luck with the rest of your shift." Meiling said with a wave as she and her two troublesome companions began to make their way up the mountain path.

"Bye-bye Momi! Next time I see you I'll bring you a bone! Ooh! Or maybe one of those silly outer world toys, the ones that squeak!" Koishi giggled happily as she waved to the humiliated guard along with Flandre.

The mentioning of said gift seemed to only make Momiji's shame grow, as her ears drooped and her eyes turned downcast. "I-I'm not a dog!" she cried in outrage, but her efforts were wasted, as the satori and her companions were no longer in sight. The white wolf let out a long sigh that she had been repressing for quite some time as she stared at her reflection in the river, "I don't get paid enough for all the grief I go through…" she muttered to herself solemnly.

* * *

"Wow Flanny! That sure was something! You were amazing!" Koishi chirped enthusiastically over Flandre's rather one-sided victory over Momiji, "She was all like 'pchew-pchew-pchew!' and you were like 'sha-BOOM!' and then she was all, 'No! How could I lose!' and then you were all like-"

"I think she gets the point Koishi." Meiling cut off, "But were amazing Flandre, you never cease to amaze! Even with the lack of practice, it seems your talent for danmaku duels never begins to dull."

Flandre grinned at the compliments that her two friends threw her way, and begun to blush from all the attention she was receiving. "Oh there was nothing to it…I just got lucky was all!"

"Many danmaku duels may depend on sheer luck at times, but I could tell that your victory was a product of your own skill. Trust me; once you lose enough duels like I have, you begin to develop an eye for these kinds of things!" Meiling laughed, "But in the end I suppose it matters not how victory was taken, the end product is the same after all. Now we can climb to the summit and find that entrance to the underground in peace with any luck." Although luck did little good when fate itself was at the beckoning of one very short-tempered and immature vampire… "Now, while we're climbing the mountain, be sure not to bring any unnecessary attention to yourselves you two…that means you, Koishi…"

"Awwww you worry too much China, I'm surprised your brain hasn't imploded from all the worrying you do, you big silly worry-wart!" Koishi giggled. "Besides, I never attract any unnecessary attention! In fact, big sis used to tell me how quiet I am! Once she forgot I was there and I gave her a big scare! Heehee…she turned as white as a ghost…Oh, I can't wait to see her again…"

"I find that highly hard to believe, you make your presence more than obvious. It would take effort NOT to notice you." Meiling said.

"Or maybe you pay extra special attention to me cuz you're a worry-wart! Or maybe it's because you… Hey, Flanny, what're you doing silly, you don't stop in the middle of the road randomly like that! That's how you get run-down by a wagon!" Koishi exclaimed to the vampire, who had stopped dead in her tracks.

The vampire suddenly looked quite pale, even sickly so. A cold-sweat began to drip from her brow, and her pupils became small, conveying an emotion that was a mix between complete shock and utter fear. The satori among the three simply raised her brow in puzzlement of the vampire's sudden change of emotion.

"Hrmmmm? What's wrong Flandre? Do you feel sick? Would you like to rest?" Meiling asked in concern.

"B…B-Big…Sister…?" Flandre stuttered in a state of shock.

Meiling turned around tentatively, and soon found herself sharing in Flandre's state of shock. She stared into the crimson eyes of the last person she wanted to see at the moment. Standing amongst the autumn colored trees lit by the sunset was none-other than the Scarlet Devil herself. "M-Mistress…Remilia…" the words struggled to escape the terrified gatekeeper's mouth; it would seem that both luck and fate had conspired against them…

"Why hello there, little sister…"

* * *

**A/N: Wow, I'm awful, aren't I? It takes talent to be this lazy! Sorry about the delay everybody, if you want to blame anybody, blame Nintendo and Intelligent systems for releasing Fire Emblem Awakening while I was right in the middle of writing this! I mean, that's just criminal!**

**Oh well, I suppose it doesn't matter so long as I remember to update this once in a while, right? It's not like I do it on purpose…Anyways, I don't have anything to say about this chapter aside from why I cut off the spell-card duel. I have a valid reason, I swear! I actually had a few good ideas for it but well...would anyone have genuinely enjoyed reading a very dull and boring explanation of what a pattern looks like? Or how so-and-so dodges a bunch of multi-colored balls? It would have been boring for you to read, and even boringer for me to write! Plus you'd have to wait at least another month for a boring, dull and basically pointless scene that contributes nothing to the plot. My apologies to anyone I may have horribly disappointed. **

**Anyways, enjoy this cliff-hanger for about…a month…or two…or maybe even three! Who knows! I haven't been very consistent with the time lapses between updates recently! I remembered the good ol' days when it took like…a week! Fun times, huh? Alright, I'll stop blabbing. I'll give it an honest effort to have another fresh chapter posted within three months! (Hopefully sooner, but you know me…)**


	25. Chapter 25: The Firefly

To say Flandre and Meiling were surprised to see none other than Remilia, would be an understatement, they were completely shocked, much to the point they couldn't formulate any coherent sentences. Koishi, however, wasn't so much surprised as she was confused. She stared at the older Scarlet sister curiously, taking a good look at the Scarlet devil from her violet hair, down to her pure-white shoes.

Remilia simply shrugged off the satori's curious gaze as she eyed her younger sibling, Flandre. She remained silent, as if trying to think of what to say to her sister, as she kept her unblinking gaze fixed on Flandre. Her staring only caused Flandre more worry, as thoughts of the harsh words and actions from her recent nightmares filled her mind. She only wished that this too, was nothing but a nasty dream.

Breaking the silence *was an unusually bold Meiling, who nervously cleared her throat, "M-Mistress…Umm…I know this kind of looks bad…But I uh…Oh, who am I kidding? I was never one to be able to talk my way out of a situation…Let's hear it. Tell me all about the horrid punishments you'll put me through…But please don't punish Flandre, this was all my idea. I accept full responsibility."

The Scarlet Devil grinned at the gatekeeper before finally bursting out into laughter, confusing Flandre and Meiling greatly. Koishi, however, just grew more and more perplexed by Flandre's elder sister, whose laughter didn't look to be ending anytime soon. Remilia's laughter echoed across Youkai Mountain with how loud it was. She wouldn't be surprised if all, who called the mountain home, could hear the vampire's laughs.

When Remilia's laughter finally desisted, the vampire turned her gaze back to the gatekeeper. "Oh China, I see you haven't lost your sense of humor…How fortunate. I'm so glad to have found you and you too, of course, my dear, precious sister! I was so very worried about you! Now come and give your big sister a hug!" Remilia opened her arms, inviting Flandre to embrace her.

Flandre didn't seem to know how to respond to this turn of events, as her face still didn't look any more collected than when Remilia first greeted them. In fact, she almost looked even more worried than she was to begin with. The younger vampire just couldn't shake the fears of her nightmares coming true.

"What's wrong sister? I hope you won't be making me come all the way over there for my hug…"

"Ummmm…Mistress? Not to mean any offense but…are you feeling well?" Meiling asked cautiously.

"Why, of course, China! I assure you I am quite healthy, I'm at the peak of my condition even. Why would you ask such a ridiculous question?" Remilia replied.

"Erm…well…Y-You see…How do I put this…?"

"You paid crazy people to chase Flanny around you big doofus!" Koishi cried out, causing Flandre to snap out of her fear induced trance, and Meiling to cringe at her words. "Big sisters aren't supposed to do that! They're supposed to hug them and give them kisses and bake them cookies and tell them bedtime stories and, and…You didn't do that at all! Y-You did… you did the exact opposite of what a big sister is supposed to do!" Oddly enough, the blue orb, that was Koishi's third-eye, seemed to bulge as if it were a beating heart with each word that left her mouth.

"K-Koishi…" Flandre stuttered out in disbelief; she was amazed by the satori. She had never seen the satori be so defensive of her, it was a stark contrast of the usually carefree and sometimes air-headed Koishi, she was used to being around with.

"Ack! K-Koishi…P-Please, just let me handle this…" Meiling whispered with worry of what repercussions the satori's harsh words might have. They were fortunate enough for the mistress to not be angry with them, she would prefer to keep this piece of luck with them if at all possible, and throwing insults towards her definitely wouldn't improve their chances of survival. "S-So sorry about that mistress, our friend here often times doesn't know when she's being rude..."

"Ah, I see…But I assure you Miss Koishi, all that I did was out of love and concern for my dear, little sister! I just wanted her home safe and sound behind the walls of the Mansion, where she wouldn't be hurt! I admit I may have been a little drastic with my actions… but I assure you, I meant no harm or misfortune to befall you." Remilia explained calmly, "Now sister, let's be going home now, you've worried so very many people!"

"I…I have…?" Flandre asked with disbelief.

"Why of course, silly! Patchouli, Sakuya and everyone else have been worried sick about you ever since you left with China! They'll be so relieved to see your smiling face again! We'll even celebrate with the finest of desserts!"

Remilia's words touched Flandre's heart; never had she ever thought that the rest of the mansion's residents would have missed her. In fact, she almost thought they were indifferent to her presence altogether. But they must have cared if they were looking eager to see her once again! This revelation almost put Flandre to tears; she couldn't believe they actually cared about her.

Koishi, however, wasn't moved in the least by Remilia's words; in fact, she seemed completely sickened by Remilia's words, as she just pouted at her with crossed arms. Remilia ignored the stink-eye that Koishi was shooting at her, as she continued to plead with her younger sister. "Now come along Flandre, let's go home, I'm sure Sakuya has prepared her finest meals for your return. And we could really use our gatekeeper, Meiling, it wouldn't do to have any intruders prowling about the Mansion, would it now?"

"S-Sis…A-Aren't you mad? I left without even saying goodbye…A-Aren't you gonna yell at me like you always do when I do something bad…?" Flandre asked timidly, not looking any less fearful of her sister than she did even with all the reassurances she gave her.

"Why on earth would I ever be angry with you, little sister? I love you all the way to the moon and back! You could never do anything to make me upset with you!" Remilia said lovingly.

Just as it looked as if Flandre was about to run over and give her elder sister the biggest hug of her lifetime, Meiling stopped the small vampire right in her tracks, grabbing her by the back of the collar of her dress. "Hold on for a moment Flandre…that isn't your sister." Meiling said, staring directly into the regal vampire's crimson eyes.

"Wh-What? Yeah she is China! That's big sister Remi! Is something wrong with your eyes?" Flandre asked in disbelief of Meiling's words.

"I can assure you my eyes are in peak condition, Flandre. The person you're looking at is not the Mistress, she's an imposter." Meiling said sternly as she glared at the purple-haired vampire, who returned a glare of her own to the gatekeeper.

"What on earth are you babbling about, China? I'm no imposter, have you gone mad? Perhaps you should get some rest…" Remilia asked in almost a hiss as her eyes furrowed in displeasure.

"No, I'm quite as sane as I was yesterday and the day before that. After all, if I wasn't all there, how on earth would I have been able to see past your ruse?" Meiling asked.

Remilia gave the gatekeeper a rather dark look, "Oh…? Would you like to explain just how exactly, I am not the Scarlet Devil?"

"Gladly." Meiling replied happily, "To begin, allow me to ask you a question, Mistress, where is your umbrella?"

Remilia's already pale skin seemingly became even paler at the question, with her mouth ajar she asked, "M-My what?"

"Your umbrella. In all my years of service to you, you've never once gone out while the sun was still in the sky without your umbrella in hand to shield yourself from the light. In fact, you've taken the same umbrella with you for the last few decades every time you've gone out." Remilia glowered at the gatekeeper with each passing word, looking quite impatient with Meiling. "It's actually quite a marvel seeing you out in broad daylight without any source of shade from the sun, I distinctly remember you being quite repulsed by the sun, being a full-blood vampire and all. You even made it very clear how distasteful you find the sun to be, considering you went through the trouble of releasing a Scarlet Mist to blot it out."

"Y-Yes well, you see I was so overcome with joy from the news of my dear, little sister's whereabouts that I forgot all about it and rushed over here to bring her home. I endured the sun out of love and concern for my sister, you see, not that I'd expect you to understand, Meiling…" Remilia said defensively, not even bothering to hide the harshness behind her words. "Now unless you're done making a complete buffoon out of yourself-"

"I'm afraid I'm not, mistress. Now on to our next piece of evidence…As I'm sure you're aware of, Mistress, I possess the ability to use and sense chi."

"Yes, yes…I'm sure we're all aware of your little parlor tricks, just get to the point or stop wasting my time, China." Remilia replied venomously as she began to tap her foot as if to emphasize her thinning patience with the gatekeeper.

"Very well, straight to the point it is then. Your chi is certainly a familiar one, but it most certainly isn't my master's. After years and years of service to the same employer, I could pick her chi out from an entire horde of vampires easily. You can disguise your appearance, but you can't hide your essence from me." Remilia snarled at the gatekeeper in anger, she looked like she was trying to keep her anger at bay by balling her hands into fists at her sides. It looked like she'd draw blood if she clenched her hands into her palms any further. "I must admit, you'd make a wonderful actor, you certainly did nail Remilia's personality…although your performance did have a small flaw…Remilia never calls me 'China'." Meiling concluded.

"Wh-Why y-you…I…I…I should rip out that cheeky tongue of yours for such…such…Impudence! You…Y-You…Disrespectful cur! You ought to learn…your place! You-You dog!" Remilia screeched, losing all of the composure she had.

"Laying it down a little thick, aren't we?" Meiling said mockingly, "Enough games, you're not fooling anyone."

Remilia's cursing and her screams of obscenities at the gatekeeper halted to a stop, and was replaced with an eerie silence. Remilia simply stared down at her unblemished shoes furiously; she was staring at her shoes so intensely that one would have thought that they had wronged her in one of the worst possible ways. Flandre looked at her sister warily as she began to cling to Meiling's dress like a small child would. Koishi, however, didn't seem to have any sense of caution, rather she looked like she was intrigued by the older vampire's fury. She had an air of anticipation in her eyes, as if the satori was expecting Remilia to burn up in an anger-fueled explosion. And considering the satori's emotionally driven words at the vampire, it would probably be exactly what Koishi was hoping for.

But instead of a great explosion, Remilia looked up from the ground with a huge smirk on her face, with a light, creepy giggle to compliment her smile. There was almost a manic look in her eye, one that you'd expect to see in a feral animal. Meiling didn't like the look Remilia was giving them; it was an unsettling sight, whatever she had in store for them, it certainly wouldn't be something pleasant.

"Well, looks like the cats out of the bag then…You know Red, you're a lot brighter than you look." Remilia chuckled, "No use trying to worm my way outta this one, may as well come clean…" as Remilia finished her sentence, the vampire's body began to go through some unusual changes…

Her violet colored hair turned as black as night, and her small pair of leathery wings seemingly retreated into her spine. Her back began to bulge before six completely different appendages burst out. It would be a stretch to call them wings, as they didn't look like they could offer any sort of flight capabilities. In fact, if anything they resembled some-sort of weapon *more(more like some-sort of weapon?). Three of the appendages protruding from her spine looked like they were some kind of bizarre looking scythe while the other three were best described as a cross between a spear and a tentacle. To complete her transformation, her light-pink dress turned as black as her hair and became much shorter; much to the point that her stocking covered legs were revealed. The only thing that didn't change in the slightest, was her eerie grin and her pair of scarlet-red eyes.

"Wait…I know you...I knew your chi felt familiar…" Meiling muttered under her breath as she took in the sight of the imposter's new form.

"H-Hey! You're that grumpy lady from the temple who wasn't watching where she was going in the hallway!" Koishi proclaimed, "What'cha doing up on the mountain? Are you sight-seeing too? Why were you posing as Flanny's sister? Is it some sort of weird hobby of yours?"

The imposter simply huffed in apparent disgust at Koishi's questions, scowling down at the satori spitefully. "I always remembered you as the annoying one…always so loud and obnoxious…Just count yourself lucky you don't have any money on your head, kid." The imposter sneered before turning her attention to Flandre and Meiling, "Now, why don't you two just come along nice and quiet and make things easier on yourselves, hmmm?"

"Sorry, but I'm afraid we can't comply with that request." Meiling said venomously as she prepared herself for the battle that was likely to ensue, "Though I have to ask, does Byakuren know what you're doing, Nue?"

"Shut up, she doesn't have anything to do with this." Nue hissed, "Last chance Red, just come along nice and quiet and no one gets hurt. Nue's honor."

"Sorry, but I have no intention of forfeiting my friends into your hands. If you want to collect the bounty on our heads, you had best believe I'm going to make you work for it!" Meiling cried with a strong sense of conviction. Her eyes burned with determination, making it clear she wouldn't be swayed by Nue's words. But then again, action always did speak louder than words…

"Well, that's a shame…" Nue groaned in disappointment, "I was hoping this would be an easy job…just my luck…Oh well, we'll just have to do this the hard way then! Just remember I gave you a choice!"Nue's six appendages then stabbed the ground, raising the black-clad girl off the ground making Nue look like some-sort of six-legged spider. The shape-shifting youkai, without warning, charged towards the small band of youkai ferociously.

Acting quickly, Meiling grabbed her two dazed companions and leapt out of the way, avoiding being trampled by Nue by just mere seconds. The nue grunted in frustration and leapt after the three, using the strength behind the six appendages protruding from her back to launch herself after her prey.

Meiling gasped in shock at her foe's demonic speed, jumping out of the way just at the nick of time. Nue, realizing she had once again missed her targets, used her strangely shaped wings slowed herself down. The shape-shifter bolted after Meiling in another attempt at making a hit against the gatekeeper.

The gatekeeper growled in frustration, shape-shifting obviously wasn't Nue's only impressive skill, her speed was overwhelming. Until today she had only seen the bothersome reporter, Aya move that quickly. Her insane amount of speed combined with her tenacity was a bad combination for Meiling. At this rate, she'd be overwhelmed, losing the fight before she even got the chance to strike back. She would need to formulate a strategy if she hoped to defeat this troublesome foe.

"Flandre, Koishi, you two stand back. Let me handle this." Meiling said as she released the two from her grasp.

"Awwww…You steal the spotlight every time…" Koishi groaned, puffing out her cheeks in outrage, "Just don't mess up…C'mon Flanny! Let's go find some seats and enjoy the show!" Flandre remained unresponsive as the satori took ahold of her hand and began dragging her off out of harm's way.

Meiling gave the vampire a concerned look; there was no telling what could be going through the vampire's mind after this sudden turn of events. It was little wonder she was in this state of silence…There would be time to rectify the situation later though, there was a much more immediate, and dangerous problem she would have to take care of first.

"Y'know, I don't get you Red." Nue said with a bit of confusion on her face, "Isn't that vampire supposed to be insanely powerful? Heck, I saw what she and the air-head did to the Lunarians…Yet you insist on fighting their battles for them?"

"Good question, I'm a gatekeeper. It's my job to protect. Simple as that." Meiling said with a shadow of a grin.

"What use is a guard for a wall that can't be breached though?" Nue snickered, "Ah well, I guess it doesn't matter in the end. You'll be a nice appetizer for the main dish…" suddenly, a pitch-fork manifested into Nue's hand, it made the already intimidating shape-shifter look even more fearsome than before.

Without any further notice, Nue resumed her assault with renewed vigor, closing the distance between herself and the gatekeeper at even faster speeds than before. Meiling however, was prepared for the attack. Making use of her inhuman amount of agility, Meiling leapt into the air gracefully and delivered a powerful drop-kick to Nue's head. The blow caused the mischievous shape-shifter to howl in pain as she held her head in agony. This left Nue vulnerable, and Meiling refused to waste the opportunity. The gatekeeper charged forward and threw a chi-infused punch right into her opponent's gut, causing Nue to fall over onto her back from the force behind the blow.

Just as Nue was about to recover from her fall, she found herself beset by Meiling, who was about to land another chi-powered punch directly in her face. Luckily for the shape-shifting youkai, she blocked the attack by using her several misshaped wings as a makeshift shield.

Nue wasn't about to stay on the defensive for long though. She used her wings to swat Meiling off her like a fly. Meiling, being one of the more graceful youkai in Gensokyo, landed on her feet no problem. The gatekeeper watched as Nue picked herself up using the tendrils coming from her back. Though she looked roughed up a bit, it didn't look like she would give up collecting the bounty anytime soon.

Meiling sighed; she had hoped she would have been able to keep this battle brief, but that didn't look like it would happen. She had to admire Nue's craftiness, not only had she come close to tricking her and Flandre to going along with her to the mansion willingly, but even the way she fought was quite clever, by using the six tentacles coming from her back to stand, she gave herself extra leverage against her opponent, but her form was something to be desired. While she certainly had strength and speed to spare, her attacks often depended on brute strength alone, making her attacks clumsy and inaccurate. This was something Meiling could use to her advantage in bringing the mischievous shape-shifter to her knees.

Nue grinned ear to ear at the gatekeeper with ragged breath, "Not bad Red…Not bad at all…But this is where the gloves come off!" the shape-shifter shouted almost gleefully. Gripping her trident in both hands, the nue leapt forward, intending to bring down an attack from above.

Meiling saw the attack coming though. Just as Nue was about to bring the butt of her trident down on her, Meiling grabbed the weapon right out of her hands and gave her a fierce palm to the face, causing the black-clad youkai to go flying across the battle damaged landscape.

Nue recovered from the blow quickly, spitting out the blood the impact had caused to flood her mouth. Despite this, Nue was grinning, as if she had the upper hand and victory for her was eminent. The shape-shifter without warning launched herself at the gatekeeper for another attack. Meiling, having grown accustomed to Nue's repetitive attacks, was prepared to evade and counter her assault. However, rather than pounce on the gatekeeper as she had done several times before, she, instead, transformed herself into a large python mid-flight. Meiling, too shocked by Nue's change of strategy wasn't able to avoid being constricted by the crafty youkai.

"China!" Flandre cried out from her perch atop a cliff next to Koishi as she watched her loyal companion become ensnared by the monstrous-sized snake that Nue had become. The satori next to her had a look of concern on her face as she bit her lower lip.

Despite the great amount of strength Meiling had under her command, she couldn't shake herself loose from Nue's grasp. In fact, the more she struggled, the tighter Nue wove herself around her. She quickly found her lungs being cut off from their oxygen supply as Nue continued to constrict around her. "Heh heh heh, not so tough now, are we Red?" Nue taunted in a distorted voice, it sounded as if she were in a tunnel of some sort as her voice had an echo to it. "You could have avoided this you know, but you just had to play the hero bit, didn't you? Don't worry though; I won't rough up your little friends too much, just enough to incapacitate them long enough to get my money."

Meiling tried to respond to Nue's taunting, but all that came out was a frustrated growl as she tried to break free of the shape-shifter's grip unsuccessfully. Her vision was beginning to darken, she wouldn't remain conscious much longer at this rate. Meiling cursed herself for letting her guard down, she should have expected such dirty-tricks from a nue…she only prayed that Flandre and Koishi would run…she didn't want them to pay for her mistake…

Just as it seemed that Nue was about to snatch victory with little effort, the most unexpected thing filled Meiling's ears. "Wriggle…KICK!" a rather high-pitched voice cried out. The battle cry was soon accompanied by Nue's cries of pain, as the shape-shifter took a rather painful looking kick to the face from a rather oddly dressed person.

The blow caused Nue to not only lose her suffocating grip on Meiling, but also caused her to revert back into her original-form as she clutched her face in pain and began to scream obscenities. The gatekeeper had never been so grateful for a fresh breath of air as she began to pant for it, it was fortunate this newcomer came when *they(That's plural, but I'm not sure how to correct it... He? She? It?) did, otherwise things would have taken a turn for the worst…It was a nice change of pace after the trying amount of trials the world seemed to be insistent on giving her as of late.

The gatekeeper soon found her two companions at her side, helping up off of the ground with concern wrecked faces. "Ch-China, are you alright?" Flandre asked in concern as she pulled the much taller woman to her feet with Koishi's assistance.

"Y-Yeah…J-Just peachy… Th…Thank you…"

As Meiling caught her breath, she was able to take her first clear look at her savior. Her rescuer was admittedly shorter than she had previously expected, in fact, she was about the height of Flandre and Koishi, if not shorter. Her clothing was strange, even by Gensokyian standards; she wore a red cape that looked like it had seen much better days. She also wore a black button-up blouse that had a strange insignia printed on it and a pair of black-matching pants. Though even stranger was the fact that her rescuer wore a pair of red-tinted glasses of some sort that hid her identity quite well, and had a small pair of what looked like antennas coming out of her cranium. She was also accompanied by a few fireflies strangely enough, they jittered around her mindlessly.

Koishi seemed to be enthralled by the short-girl's attire, in fact her eyes seemed to gleam as she stared and took in even the smallest of details on her outfit. Though it wasn't much of a surprise, sometimes Meiling questioned just what went through that brain of hers… "Who're you? And where can I get that outfit!? It's so dark and brooding…" Koishi asked suddenly, seemingly forgetting that Nue was still a very large and persistent threat.

The enigmatic girl looked back at Koishi, her expression unreadable. "…I am the one who protects those who need protection; I am the one who answers when the forces of evil come knocking, I am the light that pierces the darkness… I am justice…I am…The Firefly!" the oddly-garbed girl then thrust her hand into the air, with her index finger pointed up towards the heavens. "Have no fear fine citizens, for Gensokyo's savior has come to protect you!"

While Koishi seemed to be completely and utterly enthralled with the Firefly's theatrics, Meiling looked more dumbfounded if anything. Flandre however seemed to have a nagging suspicion that needed to be answered. "…Wriggle? Is that you?" Flandre asked with a smidge of doubt in her voice.

At Flandre's question, the Firefly lost all composure and became completely flustered. "Wh-What? I-I have no idea who th-this Wriggle character is! I am the Firefly, protector of all that is good and just in the world!" the Firefly fervently denied, "N-Now stand back fair-maiden that I have definitely not m-met before! I shall dispatch this evildoer in a flash! You may want to flee, for this clash just might be so intense that it'll melt your face clean off!"

Meiling wasn't sure how this Firefly character and Flandre were connected, but there wasn't any time to ask questions. If she were willing to stall Nue long enough for them to escape, she had nothing but praise for her. As deeply as it shamed her to retreat, she had to think of her friends before her pride.

"We'll do that…Thank you, Miss Firefly. Your actions today won't be forgotten." Meiling said gratefully, "Flandre, Koishi, let's go! There's no time to waste!"

Flandre, looking reluctant to leave the odd-girl to battle Nue by her lonesome gave the Firefly a concerned look. "Wriggle or whoever you are, thanks for the help…Good luck!" she said before doing as Meiling had said and ran off.

"Awwww! B-But she still hasn't told me where she got her outfit!" Koishi cried in disappointment, stomping her feet into the ground as if to show her displeasure before being tugged along by her collar by Meiling.

As the three disappeared from sight, the Firefly gave a sigh of relief. Taking a sideward glance over to where they had vanished, the girl grinned. "Good luck, Flandre." She was then snapped back into reality as Nue finally recovered from her nasty kick to the face.

Nue's nose was dripping blood; she tried to stop its flow with her hands, but to no avail. "D-Damn brat…Who the hell do you think you are!? No one kicks Nue Houjou in the face…without facing any repercussions!" Nue howled in anger as she picked up her trident and pointed it at the girl threateningly.

The Firefly let out an audible gulp, before replying with as much bravado as she could muster. "I-I am the Firefly! And you shall fall here fiend! P-Prepare yourself, for your reign of tyranny ends here, evildoer!" She cried, jabbing a finger into her direction for good measure.

Nue didn't feel threatened at all, she saw right through the girl's act. She let out a laugh, "Ha, funny kid. But playtime's over…Tell me which direction the vampire and her friends went and I'll let you off easy."

"N-No! Your fight is with me, villain! Learn to fear the name, 'The Firefly'!"

Nue growled in anger, she had her prey on the ropes just moments ago, only for some brat to swoop in and ruin everything. It infuriated her to no end, someone would have to pay dearly for this, and this someone was right in front of her. "Last chance kid…Tell me. NOW." Nue roared in a distorted voice.

Her voice sent shivers down the Firefly's spine, she wanted desperately to run away and hide like she had always done in the past. Yet those days were behind her…Heroes never ran away, they always fought for truth and justice and bright future… "N…N-No! The Firefly shall never cooperate with brigands as nefarious as you! Prepare yourself, the Firefly has no mercy for such horrid fiends like you!" she refused once more.

"Fine…Just remember, I gave you a choice, brat. I'll try and make this quick…" Nue said as she cracked her knuckles together fearsomely.

Despite being horribly outmatched, the Firefly stood her ground and took on an offensive stance, prepared to meet her foe in combat. Though despite the courage she was displaying, her heart was beating uncontrollably, and her entire body was shivering nervously. She steeled herself as a nue began to march her way over to her, slowly closing the distance between them. She was seriously beginning to think she was way in over her head with this hero business…

* * *

**AN: See? I had a plan for that all along. :P Well, again I take a year and a half to post a new chapter, and then apologize profusely for it. I'm sure many of you are getting tired of it, but you know, that's how things go.**** It was mostly due to a nasty case of writer's block, and me starting a new story. Just to keep things fresh and all. It's a lot different from where this story is going, but if you're interested enough, feel free to check it out...or something.  
**

**Aside from that, I don't have much to say this time...Except a special thank you to Rambo3RD for doing the proof-reading for this chapter! So if they're are any errors, it's totally not my fault! :D Joking aside, thanks to his help, I've been able to do a lot more with him picking up the slack, while the chapter gets a more thorough search before its posted. So thanks once again Mr. Rambo.**

**Hopefully the next chapter won't take so long this time.(The keyword being "Hopefully") So until next time!**


	26. Chapter 26: Road of Fortune

Kyouko sighed in relief as a she looked at her handiwork. Myouren Temple's path would no longer be marred with leaves thanks to her diligence. The yamabiko grinned in satisfaction with her job being complete. Now she could finally turn in for the day and join the rest of her fellow monks within the temple for a nice meal.

Kyouko trotted her way into the temple, humming a happy melody to herself as she spun her broom around aimlessly. She decided to check the temple's donation box before heading in, after all it wasn't as if the box were out of the way, in fact it was right by the entrance, she was sure whoever's duty it was to take the donations out at the end of the day would appreciate it. When she cracked the box's lid, she was disappointed with what she saw. The box was nearly empty, it was usually filled to the brim with money by the end of the day from generous temple-goers, yet tonight there weren't even enough coins to conceal the bottom of the box. Not to mention someone seemed to have stuffed a few leaves and acorns in the donations box for some reason.

With a huff, the yamabiko quickly cleaned out the box, ridding it of the acorns and leaves that had previously covered its interior. She couldn't believe the nerve of people, it was fine that they hadn't donated anything, but must they really fill their donation box with garbage? Kyouko was beginning to think someone had swapped the Hakurei Shrine's donation box with theirs for some laughs, such misfortune hadn't befallen their temple's donation box until now…

With the box now being in pristine condition, Kyouko internally congratulated herself for yet another good deed. Sister Byakuren would surely be proud of her if she were here...With that task completed; she began to head back into the temple.

"Staying busy as ever I see, Miss Kasodani." The yamabiko turned to face the originator of the voice, and was pleasantly surprised to see who it was.

"Oh! Good evening Miss Mamizou!" Kyouko chirped, "I was actually just about to head in for the night…What brings you out here so late?"

Mamizou adjusted her glasses before replying, "Nothing particular really, I simply wanted to go out for a bit to see what sort of things the humans have been up to as of late. Besides, one can only roost in one spot for so long before it becomes a bore."

"I see, well don't stay out too late, Gensokyo can be a scary place at night…" Kyouko warned, taking a few tentative looks at her surroundings as she did so as if to emphasize her point.

"Aye, I'll be sure to turn in before long, but I'm sure I can handle whatever Gensokyo has to offer. I may not look it, but I've had my own share of scrapes back in the day!" Mamizou said with a grin stretched across her face. "Oh, but before I depart, you wouldn't have happened to see Nue about lately have you? I haven't caught sight of her in quite a while now…Can't help but worry what sort of trouble she's stirring up unsupervised."

Kyouko rested a finger on her chin in thought as she pondered the question. She then shook her head, "Sorry, I can't say I've seen her recently…She might be in the cemetery, that's where she usually is…"

"Ah, well thank you all the same Kyouko, I appreciate your time…oh, and speaking of cemeteries, its former resident has been asking for you. It sounds like she misses you, perhaps you should consider dropping by for a visit?"

"R-Really? I better go and see her right away then! Thank you Miss Mamizou! Safe travels!" the yamabiko said in an almost flustered tone as she ran inside to presumably pay the temple's karakasa a visit.

Mamizou couldn't help but laugh at the sight, "Youth these days…I'm beginning to suspect their actions outpace their thoughts…" with her business with the yamabiko concluded, she departed into the night. Setting out to see what sort of sights she could find.

* * *

As night descended upon Gensokyo, many youkai who had remained inactive had begun to come out in search of humans foolish enough to still be wandering about at this hour. Of course being youkai themselves, Meiling, Flandre and Koishi had no need to fear. Yet after their encounter with Nue, they knew well that letting their guard down could be a fatal mistake. While they were hidden by the shroud of night, the same could be said for their pursuer, and who knew how fast of work she did with the mysterious Firefly.

It was beginning to feel like their journey had been paved with nothing but challenges recently…First the Lunarians, then the Wicked Hermit and her Jiang Shi, and now a Nue looking for some quick cash. Meiling couldn't help but begin to wonder as to which deity they may have angered to deserve this strike of misfortune…Though despite all that has happened in such a short amount of time, Flandre and Koishi's morale had yet to be dampened. They were still as enthusiastic as they had ever been, as they made chatted with one another about small mundane things.

It wasn't surprising to see Koishi being her usual cheerful self, as nearly nothing seemed to bother the girl whatsoever. The only time she had ever been in a foul mood being after their latest encounter with Princess Kaguya and her lackeys. She still wasn't certain what had happened to have put her in such a dreadful mood, but she decided that it was best not to question her of it and risk bringing up any painful memories. Though seeing Flandre in such a cheery mood was puzzling, one would have thought she would have been devastated from seeing her sister's face, only for it to be revealed as an imposter. An imposter who wanted to capture them and turn them in for an easy coin no less.

Yet there she was, giggling as if nothing had ever happened. In truth, Meiling wasn't sure whether she should have been relieved or worried. With all that has happened recently, she was surprised Flandre had been holding up as well as she had been. She had always remembered the vampire being a sensitive girl, who knew what sort of emotional turmoil was raging in her heart?

Meiling sighed, preparing herself to be ready to console the vampire and for the emotional torrent that was bound to come exploding out of her. "…Flandre." the vampire in question turned up in attention to Meiling, waiting for her to continue. "Are you…Are you alright?" the gatekeeper asked, "I mean things haven't been easy lately…With everything that's been going on…If you have anything you'd like to talk to me about, just know that I'm prepared to lend you an ear."

Flandre cocked her head to the side a bit in curiosity, "What do you mean, China? I feel fine."

"I mean…Aren't you even a little upset? With Nue masquerading as Remilia and all? Didn't that make you feel upset in the slightest?" Meiling asked, pursuing the subject further.

Flandre bit her lower lip, "Well yeah…I was sad when I found out it wasn't really big sis…" Flandre responded sadly, "But…I'm not gonna let that get me down, I'm a big girl now. Plus its all the more reason to be excited when I finally meet big sis again, once she sees how mature I've gotten, I'll bet she'll let me stay outside of the basement with you and everyone else! Then you, me and Koi-Koi can play together all the time!" the vampire cheered enthusiastically.

Meiling was stunned to say the least; it would appear that Flandre had matured while she wasn't looking. The gatekeeper couldn't help but grin despite the long day they've had, "…You're right Flandre, I'm sure the mistress will be pleasantly surprised to see how much you've grown in the last few days." Meiling ruffled the young-vampire's hair in a playful manner, earning her a childish pout from the vampire in question.

The rather heart-warming moment was interrupted by Koishi, who let out a loud yawn. "Boy, I'm tired…China, why do we have to walk…?" The satori moaned, "Flying would be so much easier…and funner! Well, I mean aside from those times you accidentally swallow a bug…Then it isn't much fun at all…Kind of like walking…"

"We're trying to attract the least amount of attention as we can, Koishi. If we flew up the mountain, either Nue or the Tengu guards would spot us in an instant. It's better to walk under the cover of the trees than risk getting into another fight…" Meiling said sternly.

"Boy China, after a few run-ins with a little bad luck, you sure do turn into a kill-joy…" Koishi grumbled.

"If killing your joy is all it'll take to keep us safe, then I regret to say that's what I'll have to do." Meiling replied nonchalantly. "Anyways, we'll call it a night once we've found a suitable campsite, just hold on until then Koishi."

"Camping on the Youkai Mountain? I can't say that I would recommend doing so, that's just an invitation for misfortune to come knocking on your door…" a soft voice replied.

Meiling quickly sprang into action, stopping in her tacks and dropping their supplies in an instance. While the voice certainly didn't sound antagonistic or sinister at the least, Meiling refused to let her guard down, she wouldn't allow a repeat of their encounter with Nue to happen. "Who are you? Show yourself at once before I drag you out in the open." Meiling said threateningly.

Complying with the order, a fair looking maiden stepped out from the shadows of the forest. Holding her hands up to her shoulders she said, "Worry not travelers, I mean you no harm…I'm simply concerned for your safety, the mountain's denizens aren't very hospitable to outsiders."

The woman, who stood before them, was quite serene looking. Her face was unblemished, and her figure was quite shapely. There was little doubt that many young men would risk the dangers of the mountain for an opportunity to try and court her. Her dark colored dress made her blend in with the environment, though it was difficult to tell in the dark of night, the hem of her skirt was a complementary red to the black that dominated her dress. The young woman also had matching ribbons tied into her light green hair. The woman was most certainly not human…perhaps a youkai? Meiling wasn't certain, as she felt an odd sensation emanating from her very being…The only thing she could ascertain was that this woman was definitely not Nue making another attempt at capturing them.

Meiling relaxed her guard, "Forgive me for my earlier rudeness, we have been running into a bad stroke of luck recently, you see, and well…one can never be too careful." The gatekeeper apologized as she scratched the back of her head awkwardly.

The woman simply nodded as she put a kind smile on her face, "It's quite all right if I were in your position, I'd be wary of strangers as well. The mountain is fraught with dangers after all, for both human and youkai alike…"

"No kidding…" Meiling sighed, "Anyways, thank you for the concern Miss…?"

"Oh, how rude of me! I am Hina Kagiyama, a pleasure to make your acquaintance, travelers." Hina said with a curtsy.

"Well met, Miss Hina. And I am Hong Meiling." The gatekeeper said with a polite bow, "And these are my companions, Flandre and Koishi. Perhaps you've already come to know this, as it would seem our reputations have become to precede us, unfortunately…"

Hina simply rested her index finger on her upper lip before shaking her head, "I don't believe I have…your names sound familiar, but...I'm afraid I don't stay up to date with the latest goings in Gensokyo…But I am pleased to meet you all the same."

"Really? I'd have thought one so close to the Tengu village would have at the very least heard a piece of gossip of us or even a mentioning…We've apparently been the talk of the town lately."

"No, I'm afraid not many seek me out, nor do I seek them." The young woman said with a sense of melancholy laced in her voice, "Anyways…You spoke of camping out on the mountain, yes? As I said earlier, that would be a disaster in the making for you and your companions. However, I know of someone who may be willing to open her doors to you for the night."

"Really? That would be wonderful!" Meiling exclaimed happily, "Where would this person be though?"

"Come, I shall guide you. Her place of dwelling isn't far from here." Hina said, motioning to the three to follow.

"Oh boy! We don't have to sleep in a stinky old tent again!" Koishi cheered as she blissfully followed after their guide along with Flandre. Though Meiling wouldn't have worded it quite like that, she silently agreed with the satori, with the addition of Koishi into their group, fitting all three of them in the tent would have been a challenge. They had been fortunate so far to have other housing options other than the tent so far. Meiling dared to be optimistic and allowed herself to think that perhaps their luck was finally taking a turn for the better…Though this didn't stop her from keeping a close eye on their guide.

* * *

Reimu Hakurei was far from a patient person; every time an incident arose she immediately set out to put whoever dared to disrupt her peace back in their place, occasionally with Marisa or anyone else who had decided on said solving incident. Her impatient nature often times got her into fights that could have easily been avoided. Fights that usually ended up destroying much of the landscape at times. Yet, no one could argue with her results, she had yet to fail in her duties as the Hakurei Shrine Maiden or protecting Gensokyo from any troublemakers. Whether it be from stopping bored celestials from causing earthquakes to even investigating an overabundance of flowers, she did it all with reluctant efficiency.

It was this impatient nature that made it very difficult not to throw out her current guest. After a hard day of work, the Shrine-maiden wanted nothing else but to call it a day and sleep until noon if possible, yet Remilia was making that quite hard to do at the moment. She understood the vampire was under a lot of stress at the moment, but she was still wrapping her head around why she insisted on coming to her of all people to talk about it. She wasn't exactly known for being sympathetic; it was one of the traits she was often criticized of. You would think she would have just spoke to her head-maid about it, or the bookworm, or even one of her numerous air-headed fairy-maids. Yet here she was, having the Scarlet Devil spill her heart out to her in her shrine as she tried desperately not to scream at her to leave or fall asleep as she was speaking.

"…Well…?" Remilia asked impatiently with her arms crossed.

"Well…?" Reimu repeated as she stifled a yawn.

"Do you know what I should do?"

"…Do what?" Reimu asked in puzzlement. The shrine-maiden had been trying so hard to stay awake that she couldn't have been bothered to pay attention to what the vampire was yammering about, she figured she would just complain to her for a while and leave eventually.

"Haven't you been paying attention?" Remilia asked in a growl. Just as Reimu was about to give her an honest answer, the vampire continued, "I asked what you think I should do about this whole mess with my sister. I mean…Was it right of me to have made such a big fuss over this? To put a bounty on her head?" she asked, "I knew I should have gone about it more subtly…I should have just handled the situation myself, and then none of this would be happening…" Remilia muttered to herself as she rested her face on the palm of her hand.

Reimu wasn't entirely sure what to say for once, she was never good with sensitive subjects such as these. She was much more skilled at throwing curt insults than consoling people; something like this was much more in Byakuren's territory. The situation was made much more difficult by the physical and emotional state that Remilia was in; this wasn't the confident and annoyingly childish vampire that Reimu had gotten to know over the years. She no longer saw the Scarlet Devil; the powerful vampire she had barely managed to defeat during the Scarlet Mist incident, all she saw now was a small and brittle child, who was at a loss for what to do and was terrified because of it. The shrine-maiden was worried that if she even gave her the lightest of touches that the vampire would shatter into a dozen pieces.

Reimu let out a weary sigh, "Look, I can't tell you what to do Remilia. I can't say I know what you're feeling right now; I never had a sister much less a brother. Could you have handled the situation better? Probably. But worrying about it isn't going to do you any good…" The shrine-maiden paused for a moment to collect her thoughts; she wasn't used to having a conversation like this, and the tiredness she felt wasn't helping matters. "All you can do now is wait. She'll come back eventually, whether it's from her own free will, or in a bounty-hunter's arms."

"Y-You don't understand! She needs to come back to the mansion as soon as possible! The longer she's out there…" Remilia said in a panic, "…Isn't there…can't you capture her or do something? Anything?"

Reimu let out a loud yawn, "No…Like I said before, that vampire is way too strong, and I'm not in the mood to be visiting Eirin's pharmacy any time soon, especially if Aya's newspaper is actually accurate for once…Besides, I hear that…that…Oh, what's her name…that one satori joined her…the one with the hat." The shrine-maiden tried her hardest to think of the satori's name, yet she just couldn't recall it. It was strange, she never forgot the names of her stronger opponents, and she distinctly remembered her giving quite a bit of trouble, even with Marisa's help. "Anyways, I'm definitely not going to risk my neck fighting Flandre and what's-her-face at the same time, it would be suicide. Not to mention your gatekeeper would be there…So unless she begins wrecking Gensokyo, I'm just going to stay out of it."

Remilia let out a soft groan, clutching her head with both of her hands. For the first time in her life, Remilia felt as if she wasn't in complete control of the situation, she felt all too weak and vulnerable… "This is all wrong…Everything is falling apart around me…How can this be happening to me…The Scarlet Devil…?" Remilia mumbled with hopelessness in her eyes.

Reimu simply sat in silence, having nothing to say. She never thought she would see Remilia in such a state before; she had always been so prideful and confident, no matter what the world threw her way. Yet now the vampire feared as the Scarlet Devil knelt before her, completely and utterly broken.

* * *

Meiling was beginning to reconsider her stance on scaling the mountain by foot, as she and her party of two trudged along following their guide closely. The gatekeeper was far from out of shape, in fact, she considered herself to be in great shape due to her constant training, not to mention her run-ins with Marisa, yet she still found climbing the mountain to be taxing. She wasn't sure if it was because she was still drained from her clash with Nue earlier, or the fact that the footing on the paths they were walking along wasn't the best, but she found herself panting in exhaustion.

It frustrated her; she had trained atop Mountains just as high, if not higher than the one she stood upon now before coming to Gensokyo long ago. A climb like this should have been an easy task. Yet she was finding it to be quite the opposite…Wounding her pride further was that she saw Flandre and Koishi were climbing the mountain as if it were nothing. Even their guide was having little trouble; in fact, she seemed to walk with a spring in her step. Meiling began to feel just a little inferior as she watched Hina waltz her way through the dense forest despite the undergrowth and the steep incline of the path.

Her endurance certainly wasn't human, yet the gatekeeper still couldn't identify just what she was exactly…Her spirit felt similar to that of a youkai or goddess, yet there was something distinct about her soul…something dark. While she certainly didn't mistrust Hina, she also wasn't about to let her guard down either. She could just as likely be yet another bounty-hunter out for the reward…

"Is something the matter, Miss Meiling?" Hina asked in concern, "Shall we stop and rest for a moment?"

Meiling shook her head wearily, "No, no, I'm fine, truly. I'm simply catching my breath…Don't stop on my behalf, besides, the faster we reach our destination, the sooner we may rest."

"I see, if you insist." Hina replied, "We've nearly reached our destination, the rest of the way shouldn't be too taxing on the body."

As she said that, Meiling and her two companions found that Hina certainly wasn't lying. They were no longer traveling uphill, and they were no longer in a wooded area. In fact, they had arrived in a completely urbanized area; it was as if they had stepped into a completely different world from the one they knew. Standing before them was easily a small city, a small city that stood within the water. Meiling was taken aback by the sight before them, and it would seem Flandre and Koishi shared in her amazement.

The gatekeeper had never in her life seen architecture like this, rather than being made of wood or stone, all of the buildings looked as if they were made completely of metal, and the lights weren't from fire, but something very unnatural looking…Meiling was tempted to say that it was magic, yet it seemed much more…artificial, than even that. The city would have been completely inaccessible if it weren't for the several bridges that spanned over the raging currents below; it looked amazingly sturdy considering how despite the strength of the rapids the bridge didn't falter at all. It was a surprise to see the Kappa settlement in such a great condition, taking into consideration the havoc Seiga had caused in the area just a few months earlier. She had heard the damage had been so bad that the city was no longer inhabitable, yet here it stood, with no trace that there had ever been such an occurrence.

"Quite a sight, is it not?" Hina said with a chuckle in response to their breathless expressions, "The Kappa are quite gifted in the art of science and technology. It's quite awe-inspiring. It never ceases to amaze me each time I gaze at it…"

"The Kappa? You mean they built all of this?" Meiling asked in shock. She had heard how technologically advanced the Kappa were before, but after seeing their work first hand, she could honestly say that words did them little justice.

"Yes, hard to believe, I know. The Kappa just keep on building and making advancements in their technology…It won't be long before they make devices up to par with those of humans in the outer world…or at least, that's what my friend keeps telling me…" Hina said with a light giggle, "Now, there's no time to be lollygagging now. Come, we had better get moving, if I know my friend, she'll still be working on one of those contraptions…Such a night-owl she is…"

Flandre and Koishi complied and began to follow their guide happily while gazing at the technological marvel that the Kappa city was. Meiling took one last long gaze at the city before lightly-jogging after the three before she found herself separated from the group.

As they traveled down the long path that stood above the river, only the metallic echo of their footsteps against the steel plated bridge and the current of the water below could be heard. Meiling had expected that a Kappa settlement would be much louder, from what she heard in the past, the Kappa often times stayed up late into the night tinkering with their contraptions. It was also strange to see that they haven't even caught sight of a single Kappa since entering the city.

Flandre seemed to take notice as she asked, "Where is everyone? It's like a ghost-town around here! Or ghost-city…or river?"

Hina paused for a moment before answering, "Oh…The Kappa are a shy people, they become nervous around strangers is all. I'm sure some will show themselves once they see we aren't any threat to them…" though as she said this, there seemed to be a kind of sadness behind her serene smile. Flandre was satisfied by the explanation and simply nodded as she peered her eyes for any Kappa prowling about.

Koishi did the same as she looked all around herself; she left no stone unturned as she looked into the shadows, to the sky, and even at her shoes for any signs of a Kappa. After finding that the labors of her search were fruitless, the satori let out a great moan. "How shy are these silly little-Kappa? The least they could do is come out and say hello!" Koishi exclaimed, "…And maybe bring me something tasty to drink…like lemonade or maybe even some cranberry juice…" everyone present simply gave the satori an incredulous look at her last comment, "…What? Walking makes me thirsty…" the satori said as her eyes drifted down to her shoes.

"If you're that thirsty then why didn't you say something earlier?" Meiling asked.

"I didn't think we'd walk this long…" Koishi mumbled, "Now my throat is dry…and my feet feel someone's been rubbing sandpaper against them…Ooh, do you think the Kappa are any good at giving foot massages?"

"It's unlikely, but I suppose there's nothing stopping you from asking." Hina replied with an amused smile, "In fact, you can start asking right now. We've finally arrived at our destination." The green-haired woman announced.

The residence wasn't too different from any of the others in the settlement; it held the same basic design as all of the other buildings in the area. In fact it would be difficult to pick the house out from the rest of the other homes in the small community. The only thing that differentiated it was the water-wheel that poked out from the side of the house, and its size. It was much larger than its neighbors, yet it was still far from being the largest building in the Kappa settlement. These slight differences aside, it otherwise blended in along with the other buildings in the city.

As she stood before the metal-plated door Hina turned to face the three she had been guiding, "Please allow me to talk to my friend first, she can be a little timid around strangers…Just be silent and stay out of sight until I say so please."

"Sounds fine by me, I just hope she won't mind us staying for the night…" Meiling replied.

"I'm sure she'll have no qualms with it once I have a small talk with her." Hina said with a bright smile, "Now wish me luck…" the green-haired woman began to gently tap on the door, cueing the three to hide themselves. Thinking quickly, Flandre hid behind the wall of the house, Koishi followed suit and hid alongside her. Meiling jumped behind a nearby barrel that many flowers were planted in just in the nick of time as the door swung open.

Standing in the doorway was a short girl with aqua blue hair that was tied into a pair of pigtails. She wore a plain white T-shirt that was stained with what was presumably oil given the Kappa's favorite past time. Around her waist was a belt that was filled with everything from a screwdriver to a wrench, it was a miracle the belt could hold as many tools as it did. The pig-tailed girl's eyes were half-shut from exhaustion but lit up as soon as she saw who was at the door.

"Oh, Hina! I never see you out and about this late in the evening…What brings you here? Would you like to come in? I could go and brew some tea quick if you'd like." The girl asked excitedly.

"Yes, I suppose I don't drop by quite this late very often, do I?" Hina chuckled, "Don't trouble yourself with the tea; I'm quite fine thank you. I just hope I wasn't interrupting you with whatever you're occupying yourself with at the moment…"

"Nah, it's all right…I'm just tinkering with some contraptions from the outside world that I came across. I gotta say that this is some pretty nice tech; I'd never have imagined humans in the outer world could have created something so advanced! Sure, it could use a few adjustments here and there, but overall this is a pretty great gizmo!" the girl responded with eyes sparkling with passion. The Kappa was obviously enthralled with the subject; it was likely she would talk about it until morning came if she could.

"That's great to hear, Nitori. I just hope you remember to take time to rest, remember what happened last time you were just a little too passionate about those contraptions of yours?"

"Y-Yeah…I know, I know…I'll turn in soon…" Nitori replied sheepishly as her cheeks became flushed a little from recalling the incident. It was so embarrassing she ended up shutting herself in her house for a whole week. "A-Anyways, enough about me! What brings you out so late, Hina? You surely didn't come here at this hour to just listen to me prattle on about my hobbies…"

"Oh, I could listen to you prattle on all day, my dear! But you're correct; I didn't come just to socialize…" Hina trailed off as she began to think of how to word her next few sentences. "…Nitori, do you recall how I've said you need to be more outgoing and meet some new people?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, I've brought a little company for you to help overcome this problem." Hina said brightly as she gestured to the three that were in hiding to show themselves to the kappa.

Stepping out from their hiding spots, Flandre and Koishi gave the Kappa their nicest smiles while Meiling simply gave her an awkward wave along with a nervous grin. Staring at the three wide-eyed, Nitori's complexion began to pale as she took in what was happening. "Gyah! H-H-H-H-Hina!" the kappa girl shrieked as she quickly pulled out a hat to use as a veil to hide behind. "Wh-what are these people d-doing here…? Y-You know I'm no good with talking to strangers…my hands get all clammy and I can't for the life of me formulate a proper sentence…I was lucky I even managed to make Marisa my friend…Wh-What makes you think these people will help my problem anymore than anyone else has!?" Nitori said to Hina in a hushed tone.

"Oh come now…Everything will be fine dear, just do what that book I gave you says and you'll be fine…" Hina whispered encouragingly.

"What, that Overcoming Shyness book? That didn't help me at all! If anything, it made my social skills even worse!" Nitori cried as she pulled at her pigtails stressfully while avoiding eye-contact with the company Hina brought along.

"Just talk the way you do when it's just me and you then, I'm sure you'll become quick friends. These three just need a place to stay for the night, that's all Nitori, surely you can last one night with a little company?"

"C-C-Can't they stay with you…? I-I'm sure I'd just bore them to tears a-and you'd be a much better hostess!" Nitori asked frantically as bullets of sweat began to pour down the kappa's face.

"You know very well my place of dwelling is far too small to accommodate them, Nitori…" Hina sighed, "If that weren't the case, I'd never ask you to step out of your comfort zone so suddenly like this. Look, if I stayed for the night along with these three, would you be all right with them resting here?"

The kappa gave a quick look to the three before immediately shifting her eyes back away from them, her cheeks quickly becoming flushed. "F-Fine…I…I guess I'd be all right if you were with me…" Nitori mumbled as she stared at the ground nervously.

"Wonderful! Thank you Nitori, I'll be sure to bring you a little treat next time I visit for your act of selflessness." Hina said with a beaming smile.

"Y-Yeah well…I guess it's the least I could do on the behalf of a friend…J-Just don't expect me to turn from a mouse to a lion in one night, o-okay…?"

"I would never my dear." Hina replied teasingly, "All right you three, why not come in and introduce yourselves?" the green-haired woman said as she gestured for the three to enter.

The red-haired guardian was the first to speak, "I am Hong Meiling," she stated with a polite bow, "I thank you from the very bottom of my heart for opening your doors to us. I will assist you in any way possible to repay your kindness during our stay." The gesture of gratitude didn't seem to put Nitori at ease as she began to fidget relentlessly and began to pull at one of her pigtails stress-fully as she forced a weak nod in response.

Flandre stepped forward and curtsied to the disheveled Kappa, "Hi! I'm Flandre! I hope we can be friends! You seem like a really nice person!" the vampire chirped happily. Her words only made the Kappa's nervousness worse as her face began to redden.

Finally, the satori of the group stood up straight and pointed at herself with her thumb, "And I'm Koishi! Nice to meet you! Has anyone ever told you that you smell like cucumbers?" Koishi asked quizzically as she tilted her head to the side curiously. Her last question earned her a tired glare from Meiling, which went unnoticed by the oblivious satori. Nitori would have laughed at the sight if she wasn't so nervous at the moment.

Taking a deep breath, the kappa gave her best effort to make and maintain eye-contact with the three. "I-I…I'm N-N-Nitori…K-Kawashiro …P-Pleased t-t-to…m-make your acquaintance…" the kappa struggled to stutter out.

Hina gave the pig-tailed girl an encouraging pat on the back, "There dear, that wasn't too hard, now was it?" Nitori could only manage a nervous nod, it took all of her willpower not to leap out the nearest window and leave this meeting behind her. She felt as if she would die of embarrassment if this carried on any longer.

"Oh! Oh! I almost forgot!" Koishi cried out suddenly, garnering the attention of all who were present. The kappa quickly turned her attention to the satori in the room and gave her a stern look, terrifying Nitori in the most unimaginable ways. "…Do you know how to give foot-massages? My feet are killing me…" the satori whined as she rubbed her foot as if it to emphasize the pain she was feeling.

Nitori simply stood there befuddled, not quite sure what to say or think. Only one thought managed to form in her brilliant mind, and that was, 'This is going to be a long night…'

* * *

The mountain had calmed down since the clash between the two youkai earlier. In fact, it was almost eerily so. It was the stark opposite to how Nue was feeling at the moment. She was furious, there was no other word to describe the emotion she felt. She nearly had her prey in her clutches, she had almost subdued the crimson-haired gatekeeper and captured her target…by all rights she should have been collecting her reward money at this very moment and put this dirty business behind her. Yet here she sat, steaming in anger as she glared at the ground in frustration.

Clenching her fist, the Nue smashed her hand into the hard ground, leaving a small crevice in her fist's wake. "Damn it…This is all wrong…It should have been an easy job, quick and easy…Curse my luck!" she growled as she smashed her claw like wings down into the ground. While it certainly didn't help her predicament in the least, it did help alleviate the anger that had begun to boil since the moment her face had met the boot of the runt who had dared to bar her from her prize.

She wasn't sure of what to do now, her quarry had eluded her, they were long gone by now. She did know, however, that she wasn't going to give up just yet…too much hinged on her success…if she didn't succeed…no, she must succeed. She didn't dare think of what would happen to her and the surrogate family she came to know over the years if she failed. She knew Byakuren and the rest of her friends would likely be upset with her with in the aftermath, yet she wouldn't allow herself to sit by idly as everything she knew began to crumble away around her. The Nue renewed her resolve; she would capture the vampire and her friends, no matter what…

"H-Hey…! L-Let me down from here this instant you dastard! Fight me like a real ma-er…woman!" a squeaky voice shouted from above.

Nue looked up to see the little maggot that had cost her everything hanging on the tallest tree on the mountain by her ragged cape. Nue had nearly forgotten about the self-proclaimed 'Firefly', she was too deep in thought to pay her much mind. The Nue hadn't roughed her up too badly, just a few bruises as a reminder to the youkai-girl to never interfere with her again, hanging her from the highest tree she could find however, was simply for her own amusement. She was amazed the green-haired brat hadn't simply flown off of the branch herself, it appeared the infamous Ice Fairy had some competition as the biggest imbecile in Gensokyo…

"C-Come on! Th-This is so unfair…How am I supposed to fight for truth and justice when no one ever fights fairly!?" the Firefly cried as she struggled to free herself from the tree.

Nue allowed herself a snicker as she watched the green-haired girl unsuccessfully attempted to free herself from the tree branch. For a brief moment, she had forgotten both her anger and the troubles that would lie ahead if she didn't collect the reward money soon…

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**A/N: Well, another chapter done, this time done faster than usual. Hopefully I can keep this streak going now! (Don't count on it.)**** I just realized a while ago, that this nerdy little story is over a year-old now! Time sure does fly, am I right? I'd like to thank everyone who's even so much as read a single paragraph out of this! When I first posted this I honestly had my doubts that anyone would enjoy this, much less read it! Thankfully that's not the case, as I (Very surprisingly, I might add.) Have over 60 reviews on this, last I checked. So really, thank you all for the support! I just hope the rest of this story will meet all of your expectations, and more.**

**And a special thanks to Rambo3rd for once again proof-reading this. (So again, any errors, totalllllllllllllly not my fault!) The next chapter will hopefully be posted before too long, as I've already written one-thousand words on it. :P Until next time!  
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	27. Chapter 27: Storm Clouds

Nitori wasn't a social person by nature, no matter how she much she'd love to be more outgoing and increase the size of her circle of friends, she'd always freeze up when encountering a stranger. Her hands would become clammy, she'd trip over her words, and sweat would trickle down her face like rain. She accepted that as a part of herself and was content with her life, her shyness didn't affect her too much amongst her own kind, and she was fortunate enough to have Hina as a friend as well.

She was especially grateful to Hina, as she was one of the few people who she had created a true bond of friendship with over her long life. The Goddess may have been a little over the top when it came to trying to help her overcome her meekness, but the Kappa knew she was only trying to help and humored her. She would participate in whatever strange idea she had to cure her shyness, which ended in complete failure every time. The two would simply laugh off the failure and end their day with a nice chat over some cucumber flavored tea.

However, Nitori would never have thought Hina would have actually brought complete strangers into her home to stay for the night, especially when these strangers had a rather huge reputation on the Youkai Mountain. Nitori tried to keep calm, but she couldn't help but fidget in her seat as she watched the three Hina brought in roll out sleeping bags out on her floor. She had heard quite a bit about the three from a combination of idle chatter amongst her people and through Aya's newspaper. While she usually never paid rumors much mind, she couldn't possible ignore them now that the people these rumors stemmed from where standing in her home.

She had heard that the vampire had the stability of a mental-ward patient, and the recent destruction of Myouren Temple's cemetery was actually due to her going off the wall…Though the Satori concerned her even more, since the first time she stepped into her home she had been rambling on about complete nonsense, nonsense that only the red-clad vampire seemingly understood. Not to mention the girl's stare was quite eerie, her eyes almost looked like they were devoid of life…The Kappa was almost afraid to take her eyes off the girl lest she went completely berserk and destroyed her home or something of the sort…The only one of these guests she wasn't terrified of was the tall one in green, she always wore a polite smile and minded her manners when she spoke to her. In a sense she reminded her of Hina…

Speaking of the Goddess, she seemed completely unfazed by just how bizarre their guests were. While she knew the Goddess didn't hear much news outside from when they had tea, she would have thought Hina would have at least seen a discarded newspaper with their faces on it, or even heard some gossip about them… Though she supposed it wouldn't have mattered who they were regardless, Hina would have helped anyone in need, no matter who they were. She was always such a selfless person, despite being feared by the majority of the other denizens on the mountain, which caused her to stay in seclusion most of the time. Aside from herself, she wasn't even sure if Hina had anyone she could actually call a friend. Yet despite all of this, she was always so kind to others…She always went out of her way to help others, from scaring humans away from the mountain to prevent themselves from getting themselves killed, to absorbing the misfortune they've accumulated. The curse-goddess was a saint in her eyes, the only person who could compete with her selflessness was the Saint Byakuren Hijiri…

"Hello? Nitori…?" the curse-goddess said, causing Nitori to snap out of her musing. "Is there a reason you're staring at me so intently? Do you have something to say to me?"

"Wh-Wha? N-No! Nothing of the sort! I just blanked out there for a second…" Nitori refuted as she waved her hands in front of herself defensively.

"I see. It's quite alright; I must admit I enjoyed the attention." Hina giggled.

Before she could stutter out a response to the curse-goddess, Nitori felt a gentle tug on her work-belt. Looking over her shoulder, the Kappa nearly jumped out of her skin as her blue eyes met a pair of empty ones. "Hey, what's this thing do?" Koishi asked as she held out a metal tool to the disheveled Kappa.

"Th-That's a wrench…I-It's used to tighten things…" Nitori meekly answered. While she could normally go on all day about her tools and give an in-depth explanation as to why each tool is immensely important and unique in their own way, the Kappa's tongue always would lock up around strangers. Especially when the stranger in question made chills go up her spine just by taking the smallest of glances at them.

"Oh…" the satori said quietly as she simply stared at the tool that rested in her hands, "Can it do anything fun though?"

"W-Well…It's not a toy…It's a tool to work with and create things…I-I guess that's kind of fun…For me anyways." Nitori said quietly.

Despite the volume of her voice, the satori seemed to have heard her clear as day, as her eyes immediately lit up. "Ooh! You build things? Can I see? Please? Pretty please? With a bucket of sugar on top?" Koishi pleaded.

Nitori mentally chided herself for mentioning what she had. While she had no trouble showing her fellow Kappa her various inventions, she was reluctant to even let the Satori to be in the same room as them. She feared that the girl would carelessly break or damage the inventions she labored so hard on to get them to work at maximum capacity. Though she feared much more what would happen if she refused her as well. After observing her closely and paying close attention to her childish demeanor, she worried the girl would throw a tantrum if she didn't allow her to even the tiniest of peeks at her inventions…Though she supposed if it came to that, perhaps the one in green who made sure that both she and the vampire didn't misbehave or accidentally destroy the mountain would resolve the situation before too much damage could be done…

Before she could decide upon which course of action to take, the decision was all but chosen for her, as the grey-haired girl began tugging on her arms relentlessly with a beaming grin on her face, giggling all the while. Nitori would have found the sight to be cute, if the girl didn't horrify her so much… "Oh Nitori, just show the girl your contraptions." The curse-goddess said with a gentle smile on her face, obviously trying to hide her amusement at the sight before, "She did ask so nicely after all."

Finding her hands tied, Nitori let out a deep sigh. "Alright…C-Come along now…" the Kappa said as she gently pushed the satori along, who cheered victoriously. Nitori made herself a mental note to get some payback at Hina later, even if it were the last thing she did…

Just as Nitori reluctantly took Koishi along to sate her curiosity, Meiling entered the room, with Flandre following close behind. Not too long after they had rejoined the curse goddess' company, the gatekeeper noticed they were short one satori. Meiling began to scan the room for their missing party-member in an almost frantic manner, she feared to think of what would happen if she left the girl unsupervised...

"Nitori took your little friend to go see her strange gadgets, curious as a child that one is." Hina said, answering Meiling's unspoken question.

"Oh, I see. Well, at least Nitori's warming up to her. Koishi has a strange habit of making bad first-impressions, you see…" Meiling said with a chuckle.

"I see, well regardless, she seems like a nice enough girl. I'm sure a little time together will be good for both her and Nitori." The curse goddess said happily, "Anyways, if you don't mind me asking, why is it that you're climbing the Youkai Mountain? Not many climb the mountain unless they have reason to."

"We're gonna go visit Koi-Koi's big sister!" Flandre interjected happily.

Hina simply nodded in understanding, "Ah…Yes, family is important. I can see now why you'd risk the dangers of the mountain so willingly, not that you couldn't handle anything the mountain threw your way of course." The green-haired woman said with a polite smile.

"What about you Hina? Do you have any big sisters?" Flandre asked curiously as she perched herself atop Nitori's neatly made bed.

Hina chuckled at the question, causing two pairs of eyebrows to be raised. "No, I'm afraid not. For a god or goddess to have siblings is a very rare case, the only deities I know that have another they can call a sister are the Aki sisters. I unfortunately was not blessed with such fortune."

Frowning at the answer she was given, Flandre looked at the goddess sadly. "That's too bad…Having a big sister is the best! A big-sister always looks out for you; she teaches you how to act like a lady...Ooh! And she also visits with you sometimes and if you're really lucky, she'll play games with you!"

"I…see." Hina responded in confusion at the vampire's last examples. Looking from the corner of her eye, she could see that Meiling was frowning at Flandre's last examples as she tipped her hat see her eyes were no longer visible. "Your sister…You must love her very much, yes?"

"Huh? Of course I do silly! Remy's the greatest!" the vampire responded gleefully, "Oh! But I like you and Koishi a bunch too, China!"

Meiling simply gave a warm smile and a nod; obviously still upset a little upset at Flandre's choice of words in describing the role of an elder sister. "So Hina, if I may ask what's it like living on the mountain? It must be tiring to deal with all the Tengu zipping around in search of the next story for their gossip papers, am I right?" Meiling said with a laugh.

"Not at all, the Tengu may be a little zealous when it comes to their literature, but they aren't too much of a bother when one becomes accustomed to it. Though that isn't to say they can't get on one's nerves every once in a while…" Hina chuckled, "Goddesses have much more pressing matters to worry about than the press besides, especially these days…"

"Could you elaborate?" the gatekeeper asked curiously, "Er that is, if it isn't too much trouble I mean."

Hina wore a small frown; the subject obviously must have been a touchy one. "Well, I'm not one to spread rumors, so if you could, please keep what I have to say to yourselves…" the curse-goddess requested.

"Of course, I wouldn't dare think of it." The red-head of the group replied.

"Don't worry! I've kept secrets for over a hundred years before!" Flandre responded enthusiastically as she scooted closer to the green-haired woman, obviously eager to hear what she had to say.

Hina looked around herself tentatively, as if trying to sniff out any eavesdroppers in the area. Seeing that the coast was clear for the moment, the goddess let out a drawn out sigh. "Well, as of late, I and my fellow goddesses have run into quite a bit of difficulty in collecting faith from the denizens of the mountain…"

"Faith…?" the vampire asked inquisitively, "Is that some sort dessert?"

"Faith is a deities' life-force, Flandre. It is their equivalent to what blood is to you if that helps put things into perspective." Meiling answered, "Gods and goddess' get faith from humans and the occasional youkai from their prayers and offerings, but if they don't receive enough faith from their followers, they will eventually fade from existence. Is this an agreeable explanation, Miss Hina?"

"Yes, that would be the basic idea. Anyways, living on this mountain where humans are scarce, it has always been difficult to collect enough faith to sustain ourselves on. Despite this, many deities have been able to overcome these difficulties and collect enough faith to survive for hundreds of years. But when a new deity comes, things always do tend to become…complicated. Tell me, have you heard of the Goddess, Kanako Yasaka who came here not too many years ago?"

The name was immediately recognizable to Meiling, as far as deities in Gensokyo came; Kanako was easily the most famous of them all despite only coming to Gensokyo a few years ago. In the time she had lived in Gensokyo, she had built quite a name for herself and the Moriya shrine, even her Shrine-Maiden was now solving incidents alongside Reimu and Marisa. Of course, her fame was also attributed to the many events she hosted, not to mention the fact that she had been responsible for two incidents, one of which put not only Gensokyo, but perhaps even the entire world in peril. But despite this, Kanako was still looked upon favorably by humans and youkai alike. In fact, she had a great amount of power on the Youkai Mountain, surprising considering she was a foreign god…

"Yes, I've heard all about Lady Kanako, what of her?"

"In short, since coming here, her influence has grown greatly; nearly everyone on the Mountain worships her, giving her a great abundance of faith and by extension, power. But this leaves the rest of us gods high and dry, so to speak. Kanako has all but monopolized the mountain's source of faith…and while a curse goddess like me doesn't live off of faith like other deities, with all the blessings Kanako has been giving to her followers, finding misfortune to sustain myself on has become scarce…" Hina said sadly, "While I have protested her actions along with my fellow gods and goddess', she refused to listen to a single word…I fear that the balance of powers have tipped far too much in her favor…before long, we will be forced to leave the Mountain we call home and find a new area to collect faith...Or we may just very well vanish all together."

"That doesn't sound good…" Flandre mumbled as she looked at the curse goddess with worry, as if she were going to vanish into nothingness at any given moment.

Meiling silently nodded in agreement, "Why hasn't Lady Yakumo interfered yet? Surely she wouldn't approve of Kanako taking all of the faith for herself? I mean, she did create Gensokyo, wouldn't she be concerned that someone has all but taken control over such a large part of Gensokyo?"

"Well, not to be speaking ill of those who aren't present, but Yukari doesn't take much interest in Gensokyo these days. From what I have heard, she has a more avid interest in the outside-world." The curse-goddess explained, "I suppose I could understand, for one who has lived as long as her, a land like Gensokyo, where things never change can surely become boring. Especially when compared to the outside world, where things are always changing, always evolving…"

"But what about Reimu then? It's her responsibility to uphold the balance within Gensokyo; surely she could solve this problem." Meiling asked.

"Miss Hakurei has been busy with her own troubles from what I can infer. The Hakurei shrine certainly isn't the epitome of wealth after all, and she has been busy enough with incidents the way it is. So unless she receives some sort of compensation or it affects her directly, I doubt she'll interfere with the goings on the Mountain. Besides, no disrespect to Miss Hakurei, but I don't believe diplomacy is her strong suit…"

Meiling couldn't have agreed with Hina's last remark, when she first encountered the Shrine-Maiden during the Scarlet Mist incident, the miko was rather…forceful about her means of entry into the Mansion. Just thinking about it was painful, it was the first time she had ever failed to stop a trespasser from entering the Mansion, and sadly, it wasn't the last thanks to a certain blonde-witch's frequent visits.

"Yes, that last part I can whole-heartedly agree on…But even so, couldn't Reimu just force Kanako into submission? Gods know she's done it to her before, not to mention to several others as well…And couldn't you and the other Gods of the Mountain provide some sort offering to her in place of coin? Gods were created from the desire of humans after all, I'm certain you could offer her something that'd make it worth her while. Like a plentiful harvest or even good fortune?"

Hina sadly shook her head, "While what you say is true, we could most certainly grant Miss Hakurei a few divine favors such as food and other things of that manner, I doubt she would be able to do anything to stop Lady Yasaka." Hina sighed, "While I certainly don't doubt Reimu's strength or her ability in performing her role as the Hakurei Shrine-Maiden, I fear that Kanako has grown far too strong for her to handle on her own. She had enough trouble engaging her when she first appeared in Gensokyo; I can't imagine the outcome coming out in her favor if she challenged her again, not with all of the followers providing her with faith now."

"Man, talk about a bleak situation…" Meiling said glumly, scratching the back of her head in thought. There must be some way to resolve this problem…

"As much as I hate to be a pessimist, I'd have to agree completely. While I can help my fellow deities find faith by relieving them of their misfortune, I'm saddened to say it will only delay the inevitable…" Hina sighed, "I ask that you mention none of this to Nitori. I'm not sure how the girl would take it to learn that my fate has been sealed…"

"I understand, but you ought to tell her, she deserves to know the truth, no matter how bitter." Meiling said.

"Yes…I'll tell her when the time comes…But until then, I just want to spend as much time with her as I can, so I may say I spent my last days happily." The curse-goddess said with a sad smile on her face. Hina had all but accepted that her demise would be soon, not believing there to be any alternative outcome. After all, in this world, the weak succumb to the strong. No matter how strong her desire was to live, her life would all the same be snuffed out, as is the order of the world.

"…It's not fair…"

Hina turned her attention to Flandre, who had remained silent during the entire conversation. In fact, she had almost forgotten she had sat and listened along with Meiling she was so quiet. The vampire had small tears in her crimson colored eyes.

Yet this sorrow was soon turned into determination, as Flandre stared into the curse-goddess' eyes, "Don't worry Miss Hina…I'll beat that big-bully into next week and make it so you won't have to go kyuu!" Flandre declared, "Then you won't have to say goodbye to Nitori ever!"

Hina was taken aback by Flandre's words, and judging by the expression Meiling was wearing, so was she. While she hadn't the slightest clue as to what, 'kyuu' meant, given the context she assumed she meant death. Never in her life had she met a stranger who cared for her existence. In all her life, people had feared her due to her nature as a goddess of misfortune causing her to be shunned by all, with the exception of a kappa who had accepted her despite her intimidating reputation. It was moments of virtue such as these that made her glad she had never lost faith that deep down; people truly were good at heart.

"…I thank you; your words bring me joy. But please young one, do not seek out a challenge with Yasaka, she's far too powerful… I could never forgive myself if you were to befall harm on my behalf…Your words alone have brought me hope."

Flandre frowned at the curse-goddess' request, but nodded silently in agreement as she wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hands. "Okay…B-But no going kyuu! You have to promise!" the vampire demanded as she extended her pinky-finger out towards the goddess.

Hina, without hesitation wrapped her own finger around Flandre's tiny one. With a smile the goddess whispered, "I Hina Kagiyama, swear that I shall live."

At that moment, Koishi rather loudly stomped her feet against the floor as she entered the room, with Nitori cringing at each metallic clang that echoed at the wake of the Satori's powerful stomps. "Man that was soooooooooooo boring…Where was all the mechas and robots…? There weren't even any lasers or explosions…" the satori grumbled in disappointment as she jumped down at a spot next to Flandre.

Nitori simply remained silent as she slumped down into a chair and sighed. The kappa looked utterly exhausted, and Meiling had a few guesses as to why as she gave a sideward look towards Koishi.

"So, how did everything go? Did you two have fun?" Hina asked Nitori with a wide smile.

The kappa just stared at Hina with a blank expression and exhaled deeply, "Don't ask…I don't want to talk about it…EVER."

As soon as she said that, a thousand scenarios specifically involving Koishi popped into Meiling's mind. She was beginning to wonder if she should ever let Koishi out of her sight again, the girl just seemed prone to do the strangest, and most unexpected things. Then again, everything seemed to be in one piece, so the gatekeeper just decided to take that as a victory in itself…

"Er…Well…I apologize for whatever Koishi did…She's such a free-spirit…hahahaha…" Meiling chuckled nervously.

"Huh? I didn't do anything naughty at all though…" Koishi said innocently, "All I did was-"

"St-Stop talking! I thought we agreed it what happened down there, would stay down there!" the kappa cut off shrilly. Nitori was obviously deeply embarrassed by whatever had occurred while entertaining Koishi's curiosity, if her beet-red face was any indication.

The kappa's flustered behavior just made Meiling even more curious about what had happened…While she wasn't the type to pry into other people's business, the gatekeeper couldn't help but want to pursue the subject further…Yet she kept her mouth shut out of respect of their host for the night, but that didn't stop her from speculating…

"Oh yeah…oops…" Koishi sheepishly responded. The satori then took a long look at her vampire friend's face, "Were you crying Flanny? Your face is all red and puffy." The satori noted.

"Wh-What? N-No! I'm a big-girl, big-girls don't cry, silly." Flandre denied, though her red cheeks didn't make her lie very convincing.

"It's alright Flanny…Even the biggest-girls need to cry sometimes…" Koishi whispered soothingly into Flandre's ear, "Besides, I can't really blame you for tearing up; Miss Kappa's scent is really strong! She must bathe in cucumber juice!" the satori then burst out laughing, while Flandre simply stared at her in confusion. Even she at times wondered went through her grey-haired companion's mind…

"Koishi! Mind your manners, and apologize this instant." Meiling said sternly.

"Oh! S-Sorry, Miss Kappa! I didn't mean to be rude…I actually like the scent of cucumbers!"

Nitori started to blush profusely and hid her embarrassment using her hat, "I-It's fine…Really…I'm not offended or anything…" she mumbled from beneath her cap.

"Regardless, Koishi really ought to start thinking about what she says…One day I fear it'll be the end of us…" the gatekeeper sighed, "Anyways, we'd best turn in for the night. I want to get an early start on the next leg of the mountain, with any luck; we should arrive at the Tengu city before nightfall."

Koishi groaned, "Again...? I liked it better when we could sleep until noon…" despite her complaints, the satori complied and began to exit the room and get ready for the night along with Flandre.

Meiling however stayed and gave a bow to their host, "I thank you once again for your hospitality, Miss Kawashiro. My companions and I are immensely grateful for your selflessness."

Nitori began to squirm in her chair in reaction of the gesture, "Ye-Yeah…D-Don't sweat it…" the kappa muttered, "If you want th-there's some spare blankets in the back-room…I-If you get cold I mean…"

"I'll keep that in mind, thank you." Meiling then exited the room to get ready for bed as well.

"…This is a good thing you're doing, Nitori." Hina said with a smile once the gatekeeper left the room.

"Yeah, yeah, I know Hina…But if you ever do anything like this to me again, I'm going to smack you upside the head with the biggest hammer I have." The Kappa replied nonchalantly.

"Oh, I'm sure you will, dear." The goddess laughed.

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**A/N: Man, it's been a long time since I haven't used the grey-line thingy in a chapter…Well, minus the note one, but that really doesn't count. Anyways, I hope this wasn't too short, it feels like this chapter is puny in comparison to a few other ones I've done…But all in all, I like how this came out, except maybe the ending. It kind of feels…rushed, y'know?**

**Anyways, another uneventful chapter, but it was necessary to set the mood for future chapters...By the way, if I got anything wrong about the whole relation of gods and faith, be sure to call me out on that. I was just interpreting it using what I knew, so it's more than unlikely there's a few inaccuracies in there…Especially with whole Curse-Goddess shtick.**

**Anyways, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter, despite it being boring! Until next time!**


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